Crossfire
by DemonxHalphas.com
Summary: Natsu and Lucy discover a cave with carvings that could be related to the missing dragons. The discovery leads the whole team on a journey filled with adventure, laughs, and confessions. Will they finally solve the mystery of July 7th, X777?
1. Chapter 1: And so it begins

**Hi everyone! This is my first fanfiction so please help me improve my stories . I'll try really hard to use correct grammar and spelling and stuff, but if I make a mistake somewhere please tell me so I can fix it as soon as possible! **

**The story takes place AFTER the seven years thing. And there may be some fighting scenes where they're all rather powerful, so you can pretend that they've all finished their training :3 There also might be some OC's, but I don't have any in mind right now. **

**And with that note, enjoy the story!**

* * *

Lucy shivered, wrapping her bare arms around herself. The forest night was dark, and very, very cold.

But it was beautiful. She could see just a little of the full moon, and the light that trickled though the forest's thick branches.

But beautiful or not, there aren't many things she wouldn't give to be in her cozy little apartment right now, soaking in her deep bathtub with its wonderfully hot water. She desperately wished she could summon Horologium, but she was completely depleted of magic power. Since fewer people were on the job than usual, she had to do more of the fighting. She thought back to that same morning, remembering the excuses of her other teammates.

_I'm sorry Lucy, but the Master had asked me to take out a Dark guild that's been a bit too rowdy lately. I'll be sure to come next time though._

_Sorry Lucy, but I already promised Juvia that I'd take her out somewhere to eat today. Really wish I could come though..._

_U-um, sorry Lucy-san, but Grandine-san had asked me to help her gather some herbs today. I'm sorry!_

_I'm not going today Lucy, I'm bringing Carla to see lots a pretty fishes! Take care of Natsu though!_

The Celestial wizard sighed, but knew that they couldn't come on missions with her _all _the time.

_But still... _she thought, looking at the pink-headed juvenile, _why on Earthland do I have to be alone with __**him**__._

It wasn't really that she was afraid of him or anything, it was just so damn _awkward. _Usually, there was Gray to start an argument with Natsu, Happy to make things more complicated, Erza to quickly silence them with her commanding tone, and little Wendy for Lucy to chat with and share her sympathy.

But today was pretty much wordless. She and Natsu had met the client, kicked a few monsters' asses, went back to the client, and started heading home. Heck, they didn't even take a train. Though Lucy felt rather bad seeing him doubled over in his seat, she found it a bit amusing to see the almighty Dragon Slayer be so easily subdued by something like motion sickness.

"Hey, Lucy." The teenager broke into her thoughts.

"Hm?" she replied half-heartedly. She just wanted to get home as soon as possible.

"We can't make it back to Magnolia Town today."

"WHAT?!" she screeched, her hands flying up to the air in protest. "But I really need to get home!"

"Quiet down Lucy, you'll wake up all the animals-"

"SCREW THE ANIMALS!"

And just then, she felt a prickly sensation on her exposed lower back. "KYAAAAAA!" she screamed, and fled without looking, running straight into Natsu.

Natsu chuckled and said "You better not, cuz I think the animals are gonna get mad." He pointed at the dangling tarantula where Lucy was half a minute ago.

Trembling, she nodded a silent agreement.

Holding onto Lucy's wrist (who was still dazed) he pulled her along until they came by a small cave.

He sniffed at the opening, using his heightened sense of smell to determine whether or not the cave was uninhabited.

It was. He grinned to himself. Perfect.

"Hey Lucy, I found our home for tonight."

Lucy quickly snapped back to life, carefully inspecting the cave. It was the perfect size for the both of them, being a couple inches higher than Natsu, and almost as wide as twice her wingspan.

"It looks pretty cold." She commented, as she stared into the cave.

Natsu shrugged. "I can make it warm soon enough." Still holding her wrist, he carefully led her into the cave, surprised at how smooth the ground has. After a minute or so, he reached the back of the cave, and traced his fingertips on the stone wall. He tilted his head. _There's some sort of carving here. _He thought. He let go of Lucy, and summoned a bright, warm fire to his hand.

Lucy closed her other hand around the skin of her wrist that was in Natsu's hand seconds ago. _It's so warm... _she thought, staring at it in the dark.

"Lucy, ya' know what this says?"

Lucy lifted her head and Natsu moved aside, allowing her to see the strange letters in the wall. The strange symbols were unfamiliar to her. "No idea. But we should bring Levy here to check it out sometime." She smiled, remembering her peppy, blue haired friend.

Lucy peered at Natsu's face, surprised to see how absorbed he was into the carvings. He was truly interested, and that was pretty rare when it came to the carefree, reckless fire mage. Suddenly worried, she asked "Hey Natsu, you okay?"

After a few moments, he said "Yeah, I'm fine." He lowered his flame-lit hand. "It's just... these letters remind me of Igneel."

He didn't sound sad at all, yet Lucy was. She knew Igneel was his foster father, an actual dragon who taught him his magic and everything else he knows. Natsu had no memories of his birth parents. Igneel was all he had, but one day, the lizard just upped and left.

And that's when he joined Fairy Tail, a boisterous guild in Magnolia Town, where hearts are vast and everyone is family, including her and Natsu. She had come to love the guild, and would protect it with her life without hesitation. She knew the pink-headed Dragon Slayer would do the same.

She sincerely hoped Igneel had a good reason for leaving his foster child. And not just him either. Wendy's and Gajeel's dragons had left the as well. And the most surprising part was, all on the same day.

Natsu noticed her mood, and said "Lucy, don't be sad, I'm fine."

"...Really?" she asked, looking up at him.

He grinned. "Really." He extinguished his fire, and walked over to a corner. He yawned, his mouth as big as a dragon's. "I'm kinda tired now. You cold? You could sleep with me." He patted the ground in front of his outstretched legs.

His unnaturally warm body heat was rather tempting, but the thought embarrassed her. She hoped the dark hid her heated cheeks. "I-in your dreams. I'll be fine." She went to the opposite corner, and settled as best she could onto the smooth ground. And, thankfully, she fell asleep almost immediately.

Natsu stared, and, after a couple moments, went to sleep as well.

* * *

Natsu groggily opened his eyes, and looked outside. The moon stared back at him,

He'd woken up in the middle of the night.

Inwardly groaning, he tried to go back to sleep, but the air smelled wrong...

Lucy, was huddled in the corner, shivering in her sleep furiously. He growled. She was on the verge of getting sick. He immediately thought of hugging her to keep her warm, but was hesitant. She would most certainly hit him for putting her in his arms without permission.

In the end, he decided a slightly mad Lucy would be better than a sick Lucy, and walked over to her. He sat next to her, and carefully lifted her in front of him, their legs stretched out. He adjusted his body temperature until he decided she wouldn't get _too_ hot, and wrapped his arms around her. She immediately stopped shivering, and let out slow, steady breaths.

Surprised by how nice it felt, he leaned back on the wall, and let sleep overtake him once more.

* * *

**Thank you for reading the first chapter of 'Crossfire'! I would greatly appreciate any comments and reviews. Please look forward to the next chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2: Another home

**Hello again everyone! ^.^ I'm back with another chapter :) I would like to thank all my followers and reviewers ^.^ It made me so happy to know that people are waiting to read my stories. I never dreamed that so many people would like it :D Please enjoy the second chapter of Crossfire!**

* * *

_"...And so the dragon saved the princess from the prince."_

_ "Wow, really?!" the little girl exclaimed, awestruck. She then turned puzzled, as she saw the remaining pages. " Mama, the story isn't over yet! Can you read it to me? Pleasepleasepleasepleeeeeeee ease?!" She lay on her stomach, her legs swinging back and forth vigorously. Her eyes shone with excitement._

_ "I don't think it is time for you to know what happens next yet, dear." The mother stroked the girl's golden locks. " But you will find out in time. I promise."_

_ She was a little disappointed, but her mother seemed sad. "Yes, Mama."_

* * *

_ That's right..._ Lucy murmured, still half asleep. _I never did find out what happened..._ The dream of her mother saddened her quited a bit, and a tear slipped down her cheek. Sherubbed her eyes, rather confused about her whereabouts.

_Am I at home?_ She felt blissfully warm, as if she were back at her apartment on her bed, wrapped in her favorite pink comforter. But she seemed to recall sleeping in a... cave. She turned around groggily. _Yeah, it's pink._

_Warm._

_Comforting._

_But definitely not..._ she thought slowly, ..._my blanket._

Lucy felt her face heat up as she stared into the face of the Dragon Slayer, inches away from her own.

The face of a sleeping Natsu.

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" she screamed tripping over limbs as she struggled to back away. She was horrified, embarrassed.

What on Earthland just happened? What thoughts just ran through her mind? Why did it feel so hot in here? Why did she wake up in arms?

Why did she like it?

She remembered last night...

"I said no..." she whispered. "But you..." Her anger rose, already fueled by embarrassment.

"You! I said no, but you did it anyway! YOU SLEPT WITH ME! WITHOUT MY PERMISSION!" She backed away a bit more as the dragon awakened from his slumber.

_That was the best sleep I ever had, _he thought. _But I don't remember setting an alarm._

The next couple seconds were a blur for Natsu. First he saw a red, angry Lucy, stars, and then a redder, not-so angry Lucy. But the second time came with pain.

"Ow." His face hurt quite a bit. When did the Celestial Spirit Wizard get so strong? "What was that for?" he groaned.

"You hugged me in my sleep!" she screeched, her eyes practically spinning.

"So?" the Dragon Slayer grumbled. "We're teammates, so there's no problem." He got up, and brushed some dirt from his legs.

"Of course there is!" she cried. "S-s-sleeping, a-and hugging, that's that kind of thing that c-... c..."

_Oh, that's right, _Natsu remembered. _I've been expecting this. _But her face was as red as his flames, even though she tried desperately to cover it. Was she still sick? He sniffed at her, checking to make sure.

"COUPLES! That's the kind of thing couples do!" Miraculously, she turned even redder.

"Couples?" Being as dense as was, he didn't quite understand. "What's that have to do anything?"

"No point in trying to explain to _you._" she retorted. "And stop smelling me! Pervert!" She promptly stomped out the door. _She's_ _not_ _sick_, he concluded. _But she's acting weird. _She tripped. _Well, weirder than usual._

_Oh, that's right, _he remembered. He quickly grabbed Lucy's hand before she could leave. "Wait," he told her. "Don't go yet."

Lucy's heart raced, and sweat tickled down her forehead. "W-what do you want?" She couldn't think clearly. What did the Dragon Slayer want from her?

"The carvings." He let go of her, and pointed his thumb behind him. "I know you said we should bring Levy here, but wouldn't it be better to just write it all down and bring it to her?"

Lucy froze, then said "Yeah, you're right." She was noticeably calmer now.

_It's just like he said, _she thought. _We're teammates, that's all. Nothing more. He doesn't want anything more. __**I**__ don't want anything more._

_...Right?_

He gave her one last look, his expression something she didn't recognize. He then turned around and started to leave, shouting over his shoulder "I'm gonna go look for breakfast. If you need anything, just yell."

His footsteps faded, and Lucy was alone in the cave, with nothing but her thoughts, and the carvings to keep her company.

* * *

**Oh my gosh, so much to write about in such a short period of time xD Even I'm getting excited.**

**I'm sorry that this chapter is so much shorter than the first, but I thought it was appropriate to stop here. I have much planned for the two, it would be ridiculously long if I had continued xD**

**I hope you liked this chapter, because it was a thriller to write :) I'll try my best to update again as soon as possible. As always, reviews, comments, and follows are much appreciated (bows) Bye for now, my friends ^.^**


	3. Chapter 3: Buried feelings

**Hello everyone ^.^ Thank you all so much for the positive reviews! They're all so encouraging and helpful :) **

**I'm also in the middle of writing a short, sweet crossover with Fairy Tail and FMA. Coming soon!**

**And now, please enjoy chapter 3 :D**

* * *

Leaves crunched under his feet, making crisp, sharp noises. He knew he was supposed to be quiet, but his mind was too occupied to care.

"Couples." Natsu snorted. He didn't know much about them, other then the fact that they did a hell of a lot more than hug. He cringed, remembering the one time he accidentally walked in on Alzack and Bisca doing... That. _No way. _he thought. _I ain't ever gonna do that. _True, he liked hugging Lucy, more than he thought he would_, _but he certainly didn't plan on doing anything else. Besides, Lucy is his teammate. Anyone would've wanted to keep her from getting ill._  
_

He tenderly felt his forehead. He knew Lucy would get mad, but he still didn't know _why._ Friends hugged. She should know that better than anyone, considering the countless times Loki had embraced her.

He didn't know what to make of the carvings either. The symbols did remind him of Igneel but... it was something more than that. Like there's was an important story behind it. And he really wanted to know what.

Turning his focus back onto the hunt, he listened for any animals, concentrating on the area further away from him. To his satisfaction, he heard a whirring sound somewhere somewhere to his right.

He quietly burned a vine off a nearby trunk, and began walking toward the sound. _Like a ninja. _He grinned, remembering his job to Everlue's mansion. He still had the request paper, hung up on his wall at home. He remembered saving that paper because it was his first job with Lucy.

_Actually... _Natsu suddenly realized, _I save almost everything involving Lucy. _

Why?

The low whirring sound shook him out of his thoughts, reminding the teenager that there was breakfast to be caught. He knew he was really close, so he creeped along, making as little noise as possible.

His muscles twitched with anticipation. Being quiet was a pain.

Finally, his efforts were rewarded when the animal was within sight. But he thought it looked strange. He's never seen anything like it before.

It was a weird, purple color, and stood on its hind legs. It was tall too, probably taller than him. But the weirdest thing about it was its head. It's spun back and forth rapidly, making that whirring sound as it did.

He shrugged. All meat looks the same after it's cooked._  
_

He bent into a position that would make it possible to close the distance between him and the thing in one jump. It looked fast. Strong too.

He lunged, yanking the rope around its long, fat neck.

"HAH!" He cried triumphantly.

The strange animal ignored him, and continued spinning his head.

He raised an eyebrow. "Well, you're quite the weakling." He had no idea whether it understood human speech, but he had assumed not.

And assumed wrong, because the second he turned around, he felt an intense pain in his behind, and the sky and ground blurring into one.

He roared, and combusted in flames of anger. The stupid thing had just kicked him!

"Screw this, imma cook you right now! ROAR OF THE FIRE DRAGON!"

* * *

Lucy took out her quill and paper, preparing to write down the symbols. She was considerably calm now, and began sorting her thoughts. _Okay, so Natsu hugged me. I woke up in his arms, thinking that it felt really nice, at least before I knew it was him. _She got out her ink, and carefully opened it. _No, _she realized. _Even after I found out, I thought it was nice. _She began to copy down the strange carving._  
_

She furrowed her eyebrows. She was certain she had never seen these letters before, but she felt as if she had some kind of connection to them. Something old, deep, but definitely there.

The Celestial Spirit Wizard sighed. It would take her quite a while to write them all down. She only hoped she could finish before another day passed.

She continued to write in silence, focusing on nothing but making her strokes as accurate as possible. Her efforts would be wasted if Levy couldn't read them right.

"Hey, Lucy!" Her partner's voice bounced off the walls of the cave. "I found something cool, you wanna see?!"

He sounded excited. "Yeah, sure." She needed a break. The blondie got up and stretched, then walked toward the exit.

She paused for a few seconds, thinking of how she should act upon seeing him.

_Maybe... _Her heart sank. _Maybe it's best if I pretended nothing happened. _The thought of doing such a thing made her rather sad, but she didn't want to lose what they already had between them. Besides, the dense male probably didn't care about it all, while she was making herself sick with worry.

_I can do this. _She thought confidently. Steeling herself, she stepped outside.

She was immediately greeted by a grinning Natsu, and a strange... Thing, strangely black in some areas.

"See, look! It's breakfast."

"Um..." Lucy stared at the creature, dumbfounded. It spun its head in response.

"You wanna eat it now?" He ignited his hand, grinning.

"HELL TO THE FRIGGIN' NO!" She cried, suddenly irritated. Her face in her hand, she mumbled "I'm going back to finish writing everything down" and walked back into the cave.

Natsu raised an eyebrow.

"Put your damn eyebrow back down!" she yelled from inside the cave.

"What the-" he muttered, surprised.

"WOMAN'S INTUITION."

His jaw dropped as her footsteps eventually faded. The perplexed Dragon Slayer shook his head, and sat down. He glanced up at the towering creature. Through all that, the thing was still spinning its head.

"What the heck am I supposed to do?" He asked it. "She's hungry." Natsu was positive he heard her stomach rumble just now.

The creature nudged Natsu's face with it's own, leaving a burning hot scrape in the process. It then turned around, it's back facing Natsu.

"Oh, you want me get on?" His face turned pale at the thought of riding the strange creature. "...You're not transportation are you?"

It continued to shake his head.

"Yeah! I agree with you! You're my friend, not transportation!" He patted its back. "You're so smart!"

He jumped on, careful to avoid it's tornado of a face. After adjusting the vine to make it resemble reins, he cried "Off to Magnolia Town!"

The Fairy Tail mage slowly faded into the trees, leaving his partner behind.

* * *

**Oh dear, I made Natsu leave Lucy behind. But don't worry, they are good intentions. Only I wonder how Lucy will react when she finds out (or if she even notices!) Oh that's right, I decide that xD Please look forward to chapter 4. Thank you all so much for reading! **

**Bye bye now ^.^**


	4. Chapter 4: Festival

**Hello everybody ^^ *waves* I'm back with another chapter! I had a whole day off today because of the snow, so I decided to update early. :) I hope you liked the last one :D Honestly, I just had to throw in the rave horse thingie. I've always thought it was cute :3 Probably just me though... And I'm seriously considering changing the rating 'T' (mainly because of the language) ...What do y'all think?**

**27 followers! In three chapters! This is so unrealllll =w= Thank you all so much! I'll keep doing my best for everyone!**

**I hope you like chapter 4 ^.^**

* * *

Lucy stared up at the wall of the ancient lettering, thinking for the second time that morning that she had much work ahead of her. She glanced outside, wondering what time it was.

She whipped out one of her silver keys, and pointed it at the empty space in front of her. "Open, Gate of the Clock! Horologium!" A golden magic circle swirled in the air, and a large grandfather clock appeared. "Morning Horologium!"

"Ah, good morning Lucy-san... I say."

"What time is it?" Lucy asked the clock spirit.

"It is... 9:42, I say."

_No wonder why I'm so hungry. _she thought. "Alright, thank you."

He started to leave, but Lucy quickly said "Wait! Is Virgo doing okay?" The Maiden spirit had been injured during yesterday's fight, and she wanted to make sure she was fine.

Horologium smiled, thinking of lucky he was to have such a caring owner. Too many Celestial Spirit Mages often put their spirits in harm's way, knowing they couldn't die.

But they still feel pain, and Lucy knew.

"She is doing just fine. In fact, she talked about coming to you to ask about her punishment... I say."

Lucy turned off. "Please tell her I have no punishment in mind."

"I'll try. But she will most likely come anyway, I say." He saluted to his owner. "I'd best be going now, I say."

"Thanks again, Horologium!"

"Anytime, Lucy-san."

He slowly vanished, leaving behind nothing but his key.

Lucy sighed, looking back at the carvings. It seemed even more than yesterday. Not only did she have to handwrite these by herself, she had to do it hungry. She sincerely hoped Natsu was looking for something to eat.

* * *

"WOOHOO!" Natsu had never ridden a horse before (nor was he sure he was riding one right now) but it felt great! The wind rushing past his face, the way the ground was all blurry beneath him, reminded him much of flying with Happy.

He missed his little friend. He sure hoped he had a good time at the aquarium with Carla. The cat had been saving money for weeks just to go there.

As he approached town, he slowed down a bit, and eased the creature into a trot.

He got some strange looks from the people walking around, but the Dragon Slayer ignored them. He had to get to the guild as soon as possible, but Erza would surely give him a beating if he ran over any citizens.

"Aaaah, home sweet home!" He slid off the creature, and stared up at his newly renovated guild, hand shielding his eyes.

"Friend, this is my guild, and the people in there are my friends too, so you can't kick them." He scowled remembering the bruise the creature gave him just a grew hours before. He leaned down and whispered "You can kick Gray though, I don't mind."

"Hello Natsu. Back from the mission so soon?"

Natsu jumped, and turned around to see the guild's strongest woman, Erza. As usual, she was pulling her mountain of luggage behind her with ease. (No joke.) "Yeah," He said grinning. "Oh, you dealt with the guild already?"

Erza scowled, but just when Natsu was beginning to think she hadn't, she said "That guild was no challenge whatsoever! Even the master was a piece of cake." She shook her head. "If I didn't know better, I'd say dark guilds are getting soft." She scoffed, and muttered "My Heaven's Wheel Armor was more than enough to deal with them."

_She beat a whole guild with only one Requip? They must have been pretty weak._

"So, how did the mission with Lucy go?"

"Successful, of course." He snorted. Remembering his partner was hungry, he asked "Do you know what Lucy likes to eat?"

"I'm afraid I don't. But perhaps Mira knows. Lucy may have eaten at the guild before." The Requip Mage glanced at the creature next to Natsu. "What on Earthland is that?"

"My new friend!" He glanced at the guild, wanting to go inside and ask Mirajane about Lucy. "You two get acquainted. I'll go inside right now."

Erza stared at the creature, it's head shaking vigourisly back and forth. She patted its neck and said "I notice you were doing that throughout our conversation as well. You must have strong muscles."

She looked thoughtfully at it for a moment, and suddenly said "I know! I shall make you my pet!" Erza had seen various guild members with their own companions, and had always been secretly jealous. She began dragging her new pet toward the shopping center. "Let us go shopping!"

The creature shook its head back and forth, tears streaming from its eyes. This woman seemed scary!

* * *

Her stomach growled, for the third time that morning. Where on Earthland was Natsu? It's been more than an hour since she last saw him...

Her hands were smeared with ink, and they ached from the relentless writing. Lucy grinned, realizing she was almost done.

She put down her equipment and thought _I think I'll take a break._

The Mage walked out of the cave, shielding her eyes from the sun. _Ah, so warm..._ She stretched this way and that, basking in the gloriously warm sun for a few minutes.

She then noticed some very strange footprints in the dirt. They were perfectly ovular, and pointed toward town. She knew automatically that they belonged to the strange creature that was with Natsu before. But why would the thing go to town? Natsu didn't just take it to town and leave Lucy by herself in the forest did he?

_Of course not. _She snorted. _He hates transportation. Besides, there's no way he would leave me alone. _She took one last stretch and and said "Alright! Now to find some water!" She turned herself to a random direction, and started to walk.

After walking for a few minutes, she finally came upon waterfall, its waters forming a small lake. It sparkled brilliantly in the sun, giving it the appearance of liquid diamonds.

"So pretty!" Lucy awed.

She knelt down by the lake, carefully rolled up her sleeves, and plunged her hands into the water. The area around her hands stained black, then turned clear again as she scrubbed the ink off her fingers.

_This would be the perfect place for a picnic._ But for a picnic you needed food, and friends, neither of which she had at the moment.

She hoped Natsu would be back soon.

* * *

"Oi! Natsu! Ya' finished the mission?"

"Hey Natsu, how did it go?"

"Welcome back, Natsu!"

Multiple cheers greeted Natsu as he walked into his guild, but he ignored them all and strode over to Mirajane, who was behind the bar.

"Hello Natsu! How did the mission go?" The white-haired 21-year-old asked in her cheery voice.

He took the seat right in front of her and said "Great. Listen, what does Lucy like to eat?"

Mirajane put down the dish she was drying off and said "I don't know. She's never eaten here before. But considering her previous life, she may like refined foods." She looked around and said "Where is Lucy? She went on the mission with you, didn't she?"

"Oh, she's still at the forest."

Mira's eyes went dark. "Still?" She half growled.

"Well... Yeah." Natsu could see she was getting angry, but had no idea why.

"Natsu, you did not just leave a girl in the forest by herself."

He panicked, because that was _exactly _what he had done.

"Um..." He fiddled with his scarf.

She yanked his face close to hers and said "Natsu, you don't _ever_ leave a girl by herself! Ever!" She pushed him back, and he grabbed the table to keep himself from falling off the chair.

The Takeover Mage, who was on the verge of taking over, thrust her finger towards the door and said "Go and get her! Right now!"

"But-"

"_NOW!_" She promptly threw him by the scarf out the door, and he flew out of sight. She turned around to finish washing the dishes, the whole guild gaping at her. "Honestly." She muttered. "The men in this guild are so dense."

* * *

"OW!" Natsu roared, aiming his flames at the sky. He groaned and shook his head, thinking how easy it was to forget that smiley Mirajane was once on par with Erza. He slowly got up. His ass was taking quite the beating today.

As much as he wanted to get back to Lucy, he had to find her something to eat.

He thought back to what Mira said '_Considering her previous life, she may like refined foods.'_

_What does 'refined' mean again? _He wondered.

_Aaaaargh! _He thought, tugging at his hair. He didn't have time for this!

_I know. _The Dragon Slayer thought suddenly. _I'll just buy her everything. _

He waddled over to the nearest convenience store, and asked for one of everything they had.

* * *

Lucy moaned. She was practically _dead_ from hunger.

The blonde teenager lay on the floor of the cave, the sound of her stomach filling her head.

She had finished copying down the symbols _hours_ ago. Why wasn't Natsu back yet?

She turned over onto her stomach, her chin on her forearms. Lucy had considered walking back to town, many times, but she had no idea which way to go. Besides, if Natsu came back and didn't find her here, he'd probably burn down the whole forest looking for her.

_It's the most beautiful day ever, and instead of enjoying it, I'm dying of hunger._ She thought bitterly. _Stupid dragon, you're not supposed to keep a princess waiting._

She sat up, and leaned against the wall. _I wonder how long the princess had to wait before the dragon came to rescue her. _

* * *

"MY HORSE IS GONE!" Natsu yelled.

He scratched his head as best he could with the plastic bags hanging from his hands. "Stupid Erza... I bet she took it."

He faced the forest. "Guess I'm gonna have to run." The teenager said to himself. He bolted awkwardly toward the trees, hoping that Lucy was still okay.

* * *

"I could've sworn I heard Natsu just now..." Gray muttered to Mirajane. "Dammit... And I wanted to make fun of him too..."

"I thought I did as well... Guess it was just our imaginations!" She said brightly.

"Yeah, maybe." The Ice Mage said, then went back into the guild.

_He was definitely here. _Mirajanethought to herself. Her eyes flashed, and her hair swirled around her. _And he's lucky he isn't anymore, because I might have used Sitris on him._

She turned around, and headed back to the guild

* * *

_So... Hungry... _Lucy thought. She had never gone this long without eating. Never.

_Just my luck to die of starvation. _She thought bitterly. _My parents sure gave me an awful name. _The Celestial Spirit Mage looked at the still-shining sun, wondering where her partner had gone.

* * *

"RAAAHHH!" Natsu roared. He was almost there! _Just hang on Lucy... Just, hang on._

* * *

Lucy could've sworn she heard Natsu just now. But she couldn't trust herself, since she was aware she was on the verge of passing out.

Just then, Natsu burst into the cave with a ton of bags in his hand. He was sweating, panting, as if he had just run a few miles nonstop. "Hi Lucy." He grinned. "I'm back."

"Stupid..." She replied weakly. "Where were you?"

"I was at town."

Wrong thing to say. "YOU LEFT ME HERE BY MYSELF?!" She screeched. She quickly kicked him, throwing him on his back. "How could you?!"

_Coulda sworn she was outa energy just now. _Natsu thought to himself. _But at least she's alright. "_

Suddenly, she was hugging him. "Idiot... What took you so long?" Her scent filled his nostrils.

"Sorry." He said. Why was it so hot in here? "There were lots of complications." She let go, and he sat up.

Lucy rolled her eyes and said "Right." She glanced at the bags. "So? What did you bring?"

"Food." He handed her the bags, and she took them. "Oof. Heavy." She dropped them on the ground, and knelt, rummaging through their belongings. "Sheesh, you brought everything."

"Uh-huh."

"Where did you get all the money to buy it all? Did you use up your share of the reward?" She took out a sandwich and began wolfing it down.

"Yup." He glanced at her. "Yours too."

Lucy choked, and glared at him. "That was my rent money, stupid!" She whined. "How am I supposed to pay it now?!"

"Don't worry, I left 70,000 for that."

"Stupid." She said again, still eating. "We had 500,000."

He could tell she was relieved. Suddenly, Natsu realized he was hungry himself. "Can I eat some of that?"

Lucy stared. It wasn't like him to _ask_ before taking what he wanted. She shrugged. "Sure, since most of its your money."

The two ate, finishing everything he had brought. They then cleaned up after themselves (as usual, Natsu just burned everything and ate it) and Lucy picked up all her papers.

"Oh, you finished?" Natsu asked.

Lucy rolled her eyes again. "Ages ago."

_It's cute when she does that. _He thought. Natsu glanced at the papers. "Need help?"

She hesitated, but then said "Sure."

She offered him half, but he just took everything, and began walking toward the guild. Lucy snorted, and followed him.

* * *

It was about 5 o'clock when they reached Fairy Tail. Upon walking in, they were enthusiastically greeted by their guild mates. Levy immediately noticed the two, and waved, grinning mischievously. "Hi Lu-chaaaaaaan! How was your mission with-" she winked "Natsu?"

Lucy blushed. "I-it was fine! Nothing happened!"

Then Natsu jumped in and asked the bluenette "Hey Levy! Lucy and I found this in a cave." He put the large stack of papers next to her. "Can you decipher it? Please?"

"Sure, I'll look at it." She sipped her drink."But not right now."

"What?! Why?!" Lucy and Natsu said together.

She grinned. "Did you forget? It's almost time for Fantasia."

* * *

**Oh gosh, that was a long chapter =w= I should be more consistent with my chapter lengths. **

**Anyway, I hope you had fun reading this one, because I had fun writing it. xD Mirajane though! I wanna do more scenes like that...**

**Yay, Fantasia! I've got a LOT planned, so please took forward to the next chapter ^.^ Bye bye!**


	5. Chapter 5: Partners

**Hiya everyone! I hope you liked the last chapter :) **

**I got 4 more followers =w= I'm so happy... You're all too kind! **

**And thank you so much for your reviews! It makes me feel much more confident about my chapters knowing that people liked them. :3 (No negative reviews either... I'm amazed.)**

**I hope you like chapter 5!**

* * *

"Fantasia?" Wendy asked, sitting at a table behind Lucy..

"Ah! That's right Wendy, you weren't here for any of them." Levy pointed her finger up in the air. "Fantasia is an annual parade hosted by Fairy Tail. But before the parade, we always do a festival."

"When is it?" Lucy asked.

"Two days from now." She remarked.

"Festival..." Natsu muttered. He seemed to be deep in thought.

"Two days?!" The blonde mage cried. "We made it back just in time!"

Levy nodded. "Erza too."

"It sounds fun!" Wendy said excitedly.

"It is!" Mirajane said from behind the bar. "Almost everyone performs." She put her hand on her chin thoughtfully. "Now that I think about it... you'll be performing as well, Wendy."

"What?! Me?!" The young girl cupped her face with her hands and lowered her head. "In front of the whole town? I can't!"

"Oh, of course you can silly! You're magic will make quite the act." Mirajane closed her eyes, with a hand on her face. "You should've seen Gray's and Juvia's magic at Fantasia last time.. It was simply stunning!"

"Wish I could say the same for yours, Mira." Lucy said teasingly.

Looking at the confused Wendy, Lucy told her "She transformed into a humongous salamander for the town to see. It was cute, but definitely not what people were expecting." She added the last part, remembering the love-struck men at the front waiting for something more... feminine.

"Ah, I was feeling rather spontaneous that night."

"Hey, I know!" Natsu cried out suddenly. He turned to his partner. "Lucy, wanna go to the festival with me? I'll make sure you have fun." He grinned at her, waiting for her response.

The girls went silent and looked at Lucy, their eyes shining and smiling deviously.

"Oh, um... sure." Lucy muttered from behind her hand, trying to hide her heated face.

There were some squeals behind her, quickly toned down by some shushing.

"Cool! I'll drop by your house later." He jumped off his chair and walked out of the guild, waving his hand over his shoulder.

Lucy stared after him, her eyes wide and her cheeks scarlet.

Finally, the girls couldn't hold it in any longer, and started squealing almost maniacally.

"Oh my gosh Lucy, Natsu just asked you out to the festival! You know how big a deal that it is?" Mira leaned in, and said "In all the time I've been here, he's never asked any girl out _anywhere."_

_"_B-but, I thought him and Lisanna used to go out and take care of the Happy egg!"

Mira waved her hand dismissively. "They were only kids. Besides, Lisanna's lost all feelings for Natsu. And I wouldn't be surprised if he did as well."

"You got a date Lu-chaaaan." Levy purred.

"I-it's not a date! Friends! We're going there as friends!" She protested.

Levy snorted. "If he wanted to go there as friends, he would've just showed up at your door at the last minute and _dragged _you there."

The others nodded in agreement.

"You too Wendy?!" Lucy put her head on the bar, her arms outstretched. "You're all so _meannn._"

"It might have been my imagination but... as Natsu-san was asking you, his heartbeat sounded slightly faster than normal..."

"HA! See! And she has super-hearing!" The girls were squealing all over again.

The young Dragon Slayer quickly put her hands in the air and waved them vigorously. "I-I could be wrong!.." But no one was listening.

Mirajane put her elbows an the bar, resting her chin on her hands. "And the funniest part is, Natsu probably didn't even realize he just asked her out." She stood up and clasped her hands near her face. "It's all so romantic~!"

"Yeah, that's definitely funny." Levy agreed. But no one was actually laughing. In fact, they were all quite serious. They all looked at Lucy, who shied away under their stares.

"W-what...?"

"...We _have _to get you new clothes."

"Ooh! Levy! You should do her hair!" Mirajane leaned in next to Wendy and whispered "She may not look like it, but Levy's an absolute _genius _at styling hair. Last time, there was a whole line of people waiting by her room at the dorm."

"Wow, really?" The young girl was amazed. She never knew that side of Levy existed.

"Well, that was the case 7 years ago..." Mira said wistfully. "But I'm sure that _some _people heard that she's back."

"NO! Absolutely not!" The Script Mage crossed her arms in front of her. "You know how tired I was?! And the owner nearly killed me over the electric bill!" She put her hand on her hip. "This year, I'm strictly limiting it to close friends and people inside the guild." She gave a stern look to the bartender. "Even with you helping me, it took nearly 3 hours to deal with everyone."

"Indeed." Mirajane remarked.

"That's crazy. That's absolutely crazy." Lucy shook her head. She then gave a small smile. "But if that's the case this year, I'll ask Cancer to give you a hand."

Levy grasped her friend's hands, tears of gratitude streaming from her eyes. "Thank you so much, Lu-chan~!" The Script Mage sobbed. She then shot a look at Mirajane. "You better help too."

Mirajane chuckled. "I wouldn't think otherwise."

The three teenagers laughed, and continued discussing more plans for Fantasia, chattering excitedly.

_Wow, this all sounds like so much fun~! _Wendy thought, smiling to herself.

_I can't wait!_

* * *

Natsu was utterly confused. All he did was ask his teammate to go to the festival with him but... Why was it so _hot_? Why did his heart rate seem faster than normal? He tugged at his scarf, feeling drenched with sweat. Was he sick?

"Oi, Natsu." Gray waved to him, and offered his fist.

Natsu hesitantly bumped it with his own in response. The Ice Mage greeting him in this manner was pretty unusual. Did he want something?

"Heard you asked Lucy out to the festival." He smirked at the Dragon Slayer.

"And?"

"_And_? Dude, you like her or something?"

"Yes?" Gray raised an eyebrow. "No."

"I dunno, maybe." He tugged at his scarf again. He was doing a lot of that lately.

Gray sighed. His old rival can be pretty dense. "Ah, all right." He walked into the guild, waving over his shoulder. "See you later."

"Hey, Gray." Natsu said.

"What?

"Put your clothes back on first."

The boy glanced down, and upon seeing his bare chest, he shouted "Crap!"

* * *

"Hey, Romeo, you gonna ask Wendy to the festival?" Macao asked his son. After gulping down some of the alcohol, he slammed it down onto the table.

Romeo glanced at the girl, who was still sitting by herself. She noticed him, and smiled and waved. Romeo did the same, and turned back to his father. "I dunno." He _had _been thinking about it for quite sometime, but... "Wouldn't it be weird? Technically, she's 6 years older than me." When Wendy had went to Tenrou Island, she was 12, and he was 6. After the 7 years she slept, however, Wendy still seemed to be 12, while he was 13.

The slightly drunk Conbolt guffawed with laughter, and whispered to Romeo "Look kid, you don't age unless you live, and that girl has only lived 12. Sleeping don't count." He took another drink. "So don't worry about it! Age is just a number anyhow." He slapped Romeo in the back, effectively making him choke.

The boy got up to leave. He could see that if he stayed much longer, things could get ugly. Before he could actually go, however, his father quickly jerked him back by the arm and whispered in his ear "Look boy, you do it the Conbolt way. You ask her out, you give her a good time, and when it's all over you get her in a dark alley and-"

Romeo quickly pulled out of his grasp, and yelled "You crazy, old man?! I'm 13! I'm not gonna go around banging some girl I just-" He quickly stopped however, as he saw Wendy staring at him, her eyes wide. He had held her gaze for only a second, when she dashed out the door, blue pigtails flying. Romeo quickly got up and ran after her, knocking over the flimsy wooden table in the process.

As he saw his son fly out the door, Macao chuckled "young love" to himself, and took another drink.

* * *

Oh, dear god. Why did she have to hear that?

_Stupid Dragon Slayer senses. _Wendy thought to herself. It was causing her a lot of trouble today. Her shoes pounded on the pavement. She didn't get very far, however, before she felt a hand on her wrist. Her heart stopped.

She didn't think. She didn't look. Pure instinct overtook her, as she wildly let loose her magic.

"ROAR OF THE SKY DRAGON!"

"GAH!" Romeo quickly ducked to the side, narrowly escaping the spinning, blast of air. It shot past him, and went harmlessly into the clouds.

Wendy covered her mouth with her hands, horrified, and squeaked "I'm sorry Romeo-san!"

The boy scratched the back of his head, and said apologetically "It's alright. It's my fault for scaring you like that. And don't call me 'san,' we're practically the same age." He paused and added "Technically."

Wendy smiled and said shyly "Okay... Romeo... kun?" She had a slight blush that looked extremely cute, or at least to Romeo.

"Yep." He grinned, then started blushing himself. "Um... Can I call you Wendy-chan?" He immediately started waving his hands in the air, stuttering "I-I mean, if you want to-"

"Sure! I don't mind!" She blurted.

Both of them stood there, red-faced and not looking each other in the eyes.

Suddenly, a rather drunk wailing wafted onto the road from inside the guild. "_Yooooooouuung... loooooooooovvve~"_

Romeo's face was now twice as red, as he shouted "SHUT UP, DAD!" The boy covered his face with one hand, partially hiding his flushed cheeks. He caught Wendy's stare, and smiled sheepishly from behind his hand.

Wendy started laughing, doubled over and clutching her stomach. She half stood up, and gasped "I'm sorry, Romeo-kun! It's just..." she laughed "Your dad is so funny!"

Romeo looked at the girl, and, seeing her all bent up like that, started laughing as well. Another of chorus of '_young_ _loves' _started again, and soon enough, the two children were rolling around the ground in hysterics.

When the laughter subsided, Romeo looked Wendy in the eyes and asked "Wendy, will you let me take you to the festival?"

The young girl paused for just a moment, then smiled. "Okay." She grinned.

The two of them quickly turned red, and turned away from each other.

Still lying in the road, they eventually looked up, and watched the sun set in the sky.

* * *

Levy stacked up all the papers that Lu-chan had given her, and started heading home. Even if she couldn't decipher them at the moment, she wanted to keep them safe. The Script Mage could tell Lucy had put a lot of work into copying them down.

_Arggh... I can't see! _Curse her lack of height.

"Need any help?" Asked a rough, frightening voice from beside her.

Not even waiting for her response, the Iron Dragon Slayer took nearly the whole pile from her and started walking to the dorm. Levy quickly rushed after him.

He glanced at the papers. "What the heck is all this?"

"They're a copy of some carvings Lucy and Natsu found while they were on their mission."

"Oh." Gajeel looked more closely at them. "Looks kinda familiar."

"Oh, really?" She looked thoughtful. "That's kind of interesting."

The two of them walked to the dorm in silence. When she got to her's, she opened the door and let Gajeel in. The second he walked in, however, he twitched his nose. "This place is full of you."

"Eh?" Asked Levy, not quite comprehending.

"Your smell." He said bluntly.

The girl rolled her eyes. "Well, I do live here." She directed him her room, and had him put the papers on her desk' and thanked him, his only response being something like 'only because you insisted...'. Levy had fully expected Gajeel to leave right after he helped her, but instead he stared at her, seemingly glaring. But Levy knew him enough to know that the Dragon Slayer's face was always like that.

"W-what?..." She wanted to shrink away from his gaze, but forced herself not to.

"Well, if you insist." He said, then walked out of the room.

"Wait, what?"

He stopped to look at her, and said "The festival. I'm only taking you because you insisted on it."

Levy was quite positive she hadn't said a word to him about the festival, but just to humor him, she replied "Of course."

Satisfied, Gajeel left her dorm, and shut the door behind him.

Levy turned around and reorganized the papers, which got heavily jumbled in its transition. "Stupid..." She muttered to herself. "Why can't the fool just ask a girl out normally?"

But despite the fact that she was annoyed, she was looking forward to it. A day with the man who had both tried to killed and save her.

Levy smiled. Fantasia will be quite interesting this year. That she was sure of.

* * *

**I think I can safely say that you will be expecting long chapters from me from now on ^.^ OH MY GOSH, WendyxRomeo... So cute! **

**I was cracking up when I was writing about Macao's part. I mean seriously, Macao, waving around his beer while singing 'young love' over and over... What's not to laugh at? xD**

**I know Natsu's part wasn't all that long, but alas, he is a dense fool who doesn't even know what Lucy is doing to him xD **

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter! As always, reviews are much appreciated :) **

**I'll be back before you know it. Good bye! :D**


	6. Chapter 6: Preparation

**Hello everyone! Miss me? xD Just screwing around~**

**So many couples! And I have one more for you :3 I thought about putting it in the last chapter, but I wanted to keep it a Dragon Slayer thing so... ****Okay, if you really want me to be honest, I kinda/sorta forgot xD I'm sorry! But they're here now, and that's what matters.**

**I'm getting more follows by the chapter! =w= Thank you all so much! And thank you very very much for your reviews (especially to those people who review like, every single chapter. Love ya!) c: At the rate I update, how do any of you have time for me? xD And~ I decided that for every 25 reviews (at least up till 75, but that seems pretty far from now) I'll write a bonus chapter for you all :) I have a few ideas~ And of course, I'll be sure not to let them get in the way of the real story.**

**I'm also going to focus on putting more details in my chapters, give you more of an image of what's happening c: I absolutely love when authors do that to me, it makes the story seem much more realistic.**

**And just a quick note- my FMA/Fairy Tail crossover is officially completed c: (And it will have been for a couple days by the time this chapter gets published) Please feel free to take a look :D**

**And with that note, enjoy the chapter 6!**

* * *

Erza hummed as she strolled through the streets, dragging along her 'horse' (the pet shop owner had classified it as such) in one hand and the necessary provisions she had recently bought for it in the other.

The scarlet haired woman was having a terrific day. Not only did the Fairy Hills owner allow her to keep her pet, she also got a date to the festival! She blushed slightly, remembering her conversation with her old friend a few hours ago...

* * *

_'Now, let's see...' The Requip Mage scanned the stores nearby, wondering which would provide the highest quality items for her pet. Sadly though, she saw none, and was about to move on when a figure nearby caught her attention._

_Erza squinted into the crowd, wanting to make sure if it was who she thought it was. No... It couldn't be..._

_"...Jellal?" The figure whipped around, startled to see her. Erza was even more surprised, however. It was not like him to be wandering around in broad daylight when he was still considered a wanted criminal. "Oh, forgive me. Did I surprise you?"_

_"Ah, well- yes. No! I mean, it's fine, I don't mind." Jellal sheepishly scratched the back of his head, and asked "So... What's up?"_

_Erza smiled. 'Clumsy as ever' she thought. "Everything is just fine." She gestured to the creature next to her. "I was only shopping for some things for my companion." _

_Jellal gawked. Erza looked at him quizzically. Was he expecting something else?_

_'I never thought Erza liked such things.' Jellal __thought to himself. 'I figured she'd get a much more... majestic creature, if any.' He smiled unconsciously, thinking that her new friend would have quite the life from now on._

_Seeing Jellal smile, she smiled back. "Are you here for Fantasia?"_

_"Fantasia?" He looked utterly confused. _

_Erza couldn't help but laugh. "Fantasia is only the world's best parade hosted by the world's best guild." She said teasingly._

_"Ah, of course. Silly me." Jellal said, sounding amused._

_Erza leaned in closer. "And preceding the parade is a __festival." Her face only inches from his, she said "And this year, none shall be seen without a date." Her eyes glinted._

_"That so?" His amused expression suddenly turned to horror as he realized what the scarlet haired woman was getting at. "Wait, you can't be-"_

_She turned around quickly, and said "Then it's settled. I will be waiting for you two nights from now, 6 o'clock, at Fairy Hills." _

_Jellal stood there shocked, not only by how close her face had been to his, but also because he could have sworn Erza's face was slightly red before she showed her back. 'That does sound fun...' He thought. 'No, wait! I'm a wanted criminal!" His mouth twisted, as he tried to speak. There were so many risks, he didn't even know where to start! Finally, he sputtered "I'm a wanted man! If anyone sees me with you, it would cause problems for Fairy Tail!"_

_She began to walk away, waving a hand over her shoulder dismissively. "We'll manage." The Requip Mage then stopped and turned around, her face glowing from the sun, and shining with pride. "We are Fairy tail, after all."_

_And indeed they are. Jellal knew from his time on the council that no matter how sticky the situation, Fairy Tail always pulled through. But still..._

_"Alright." He said without thinking. 'Oh, no.' He thought, panic rising up in his chest. 'I did not just say I would take Erza out on a date.'_

_"Good." Erza walked away, her scarlet hair swaying behind her._

_'I think I just did." Jellal inwardly groaned. 'Oh dear god, I'm screwed.'_

* * *

All her excitement turned to horror, then anger as she realized what she just done. Erza punched the nearest pole, her armored fist sinking nicely into the metal. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her horse jump about 5 feet into the air.

"I'm so stupid..." She muttered through her gritted teeth, resting her forehead on the disfigured structure. She was supposed to be Titania, Fairy Tail's strongest woman, beautiful, strong, fearsome, a role model for her guild.

Yet, she let a man cloud her judgement.

Being seen with Jellal would most definitely be troublesome. The Fairy Tail Mage had no doubt that if the council forced themselves upon them, her guild would somehow squeeze through. But there could still be consequences.

She knew she had to go talk to him, but the thought of it nearly broke her heart. She so, very badly wanted to go to the festival with Jellal, talk with him, laugh with him. He was truly himself again, and out of prison... Even if he broke out. Besides, the chances that the mage was still there after 4 hours was extremely slim.

_But... As a Fairy Tail mage, it is my duty to try._

Practically dragging for own two feet, she forced herself to go back to where she had spoken with Jellal. _This must be done. _A tear rolled down her cheek, but she quickly swiped it away, slicing her skin on her armor in the process, her expression remaining fierce. _For my friends._

_For my guild._

* * *

Natsu stayed outside, watching the sun slowly sink over the horizon. His mind was a total mess. He didn't know what to do.

Did he like Lucy? All he knew was, Lucy was the first person to screw him up so badly. Natsu was positive that this was the first time he was so utterly confused.

_...I want to protect Lucy. _He thought. Yes, he was sure of this as well. But he knew that he wanted to protect everyone. Gramps, Mira, Erza, Happy... Even that bastard stripper Gray. Everyone who is part of his guild, his family, he would fight for.

_I want Lucy to be happy. _Natsu absolutely hated seeing her sad, and seeing her crying was even worse. When he saw her cry, his own heart had felt as if it were twisting, breaking.

It was getting dark, and the sun was almost gone. The moon had come up long ago, shining, and extremely close to a full moon.

It will be full for Fantasia.

Natsu's eyes drooped, sleep on the brink of overtaking him. He groggily crawled over to the nearest bench, and felt one last thought slip into his mind before he succumbed to his drowsiness.

_I want Lucy to stay with me._

* * *

**The next morning~ **

The town was full of excitement, chattering about the parade that was taking place tomorrow night. Fairy Tail hadn't done Fantasia for the last 4 years, due to the lack of members.

But this year, their favorites were back.

And of course, they were looking forward to the festival as well. The food was always delicious, the games fun, and the laughter boundless.

Numerous girls talked about going to Levy's dorm, much to the poor girl's dismay. Some even approached her, their eyes glittering with excitement. All Levy could do in response was smile and nod. The Script Mage was much too kind, and couldn't turn down their offers.

The Fairy Tail mages bustled around town, getting as much ready as they can for tomorrow night. Of course, they couldn't do a full on set-up, as that would impede with the citizens' every day tasks. Mirajane had went shopping for the ingredients for the food, most likely buying out stores. Erza was hanging up various decorations around town, for she had an eye for such things. The Master had even told her to buy whatever she thought was needed, and boasted throughout town that this will be the best Fantasia they had yet. Lisanna was preparing the kitchen, wiping down counters, clearing out refrigerators, and looking up various recipes, searching for the best food that would be easy to prepare, yet still taste good. Jet ran back and forth, carrying out simple errands and delivering messages to his other guildmates. Gajeel, Elfman, and some other members helped with the heavy lifting. Reedus was busy painting some pictures to sell at the festival that would mostly go towards the guild's funds, and got extra supplies for any last-minute requests. Gray and Juvia discussed their act, and made plans for Gray's solo just in case it would rain and Juvia couldn't participate, being busy keeping it in check. Romeo did some more of the simple tasks, carrying boxes between guild members, and Wendy helped everyone out as much as she could with her magic, using her stat-increasing Vernier and Arms, and healing any minor injuries.

Meanwhile, Lucy and Happy were searching for Natsu. The Fire mage hadn't shown up at Lucy's house nor his own the night before, and the two were extremely worried.

"Natsu! Natsu!" Lucy shouted, cupping her hands around her mouth.

"Natsuuuuuu!" Happy cried, flying through the sky.

"Geez, where is that idiot?" It was nearly noon, and Natsu always came to see her before then, regardless of what she was doing.

Lucy wanted to help prepare for Fantasia, but Mirajane had insisted she go look for him, saying that Natsu had always been a huge help.

_"You and Happy are more likely to find him than any of us." _

_What's that supposed to mean anyway? _Lucy scowled. Mirajane was smiling when she said it, and she didn't like that.

By now, the Celestial Spirit Mage was more annoyed than angry.

Suddenly, Happy cried out "Natsu!" and zoomed ahead. The Exceed sounded relieved.

Lucy sighed, relieved as well, and ran after the cat as fast as her legs could take her.

* * *

Natsu groggily rose, instantly turning away from the sun shining straight into his eyes. His eyesight was blurred by colored spots, and he tried to rub it away.

He was positive his vision was cleared a few moments later, but all he could see was white. He again attempted to wipe away they disturbance, but instead of feeling skin, beneath his fingers he felt fur. ''Natsuuuu...'' The thing moaned into his face.

"...Happy?" He carefully pulled his friend away from his face. "What are you doing here?" The Dragon Slayer looked at Lucy, who was tapping her foot angrily. "Hey Lucy! Good mor-"

He was abruptly halted by a fist in his face, but still managed to croak out "-ning."

"IDIOT! We were worried about you!" Lucy scowled, and removed her hand, repositioning it in her hip.

"What? Why?" He looked at her quizzically. Oh, the life of a fool.

The blondie threw up her hands in exasperation. "Because you always come to my house and you didn't come to my house last night nor did you come today and Happy said you weren't at your house and- oh never mind." She stopped, seeing that Natsu was pretty much lost. She then proceeded to dragging him, saying "Come on, Mirajane was looking for you."

Natsu started to protest, but soon remembered that his teammate was as stubborn as he was, and let her take him away.

* * *

_I cannot believe this. _Lucy thought, gritting her teeth. _Here I was worrying myself to death about him and the shit bastard was sleeping on a bench._

She noticed her luggage was being strangely cooperative. Not stopping, she glanced at him, surprised even more to see how deep in his thoughts he looked. Natsu noticed her, and gave a lopsided grin in response.

Blushing, Lucy forced herself to scowl. After turning away, she muttered "If you're going to smile, could you do it without being so damn cute?"

"Huh?" Did he hear that right?

"N-nothing." She replied, her voice shaky. The Celestial Spirit Mage suddenly dropped him, and the sound of his skull hitting stones filled the street. "Get up and walk. You're too heavy." She resumed walking.

Natsu remained curled up in pain for an extra moment, his hands on the back of his head. He then shot up to his feet, and followed her.

Natsu scratched his head, confused yet again. Lucy thought he was cute?

That's just too weird.

* * *

"Found him." Lucy shoved Natsu toward Mirajane. "Now what?"

"Oh, thank you Lucy!" Mirajane said brightly. "You should go help out Erza. I think she needs it."

"Ah, thanks. I'll go do that."

As soon Lucy waved goodbye and walked out of the guild, Mirajane looked deviously at Natsu, putting her elbows on the table and resting her chin on her hands. "So? How long?"

"Hm? How long what?"

She playfully poked Natsu in the arm, and said "Oh, you know, _you liking Lucy._" The white-haired adult looked as cheery as ever, but Natsu could a hear a little '_If-you-don't-tell-me-I'm-going-to-kill-you' _in her voice.

Natsu sighed. The woman always threatened to show her inner demon when it was about Lucy. "I don't know."

"...What exactly don't you know?" Oh god, she was about to lose it.

"Everything! I don't know when I started liking her, if I even like her, or even what 'like' is supposed to be!" He slammed his head onto the bar, and mumbled into the wood "Or even if she likes _me._.."

Mirajane sighed, but it came out more like a growl. Brick walls were as dense as _cheese _compared to Natsu. And Lucy wasn't all that much better. Couldn't the two see that they obviously like each other?

Natsu, hearing the frustration in the mage, was terrified. In all his attempts to keep her from unleashing her wrath, had he still somehow managed to make her angry?

She sighed again, and looked him directly in the eyes. "Natsu, I will ask you questions concerning Lucy, and you will answer them truthfully in completely." Her hair started rising up around her. "Understand?"

"Y-yes Mira!" Oh god, the last time he said that was when he was a kid.

"Do you want to protect Lucy?"

"Yes." He had confirmed himself last night.

"Do you want Lucy to be happy?"

"Yeah." That too.

"Do you think she's pretty?"

At first the Dragon Slayer thought she was joking, but her piercing gaze told him not. "U-um..."

"Answer!" She growled.

"Yes!" Natsu definitely did not think she was ugly, therefore, she must pretty. (Just his logic) Besides, appearances didn't matter all that much to him.

"How would you feel if she left the guild? Like right now?"

Natsu's face soured. "I'd hate it." Mirajane scowled, and he quickly tried to elaborate. "It-it'd be like..." He scoured his mind for words. "Like the world broke apart or something." He furrowed his brow, immediately taking back his previous words. "Nu-uh, something more than that."

Suddenly he flung his hands up in the air, extremely frustrated. "I don't know! I'm too stupid for this!"

Mirajane's mouth twitched. She was trying so hard not to smile! Natsu could be absolutely adorable sometimes.

But she wasn't done yet. "Do you like Lucy?" She quickly added "More than other girls?"

Natsu nodded his head, slowly. "Yeah... Lots more." And it was true. For many reasons.

Mira allowed herself one quick smile. "Do you love Lucy?" She leaned in. "You want to protect Lucy. You want Lucy to be happy. You like her more than anyone else." Her voice turned soft. "What else do you need?"

Natsu hesitated, his mind reeling. Did he love Lucy? Squeezing his eyes shut, he thought as hard as he could.

"...I care about her a lot." He finally said. "But I still don't know yet if I 'love' her."

Mira sighed yet again, but she didn't seem angry. "You'll know one day, Natsu." She turned around, and started doing the dishes. "You should go help the others. They might need a hand or two." She was oddly quiet. Not her usual, bubbly self, but not a demon either.

That was all? "Alright."

Natsu was at the door when Mrajane called to him. "Oh, and Natsu?"

"Yeah?"

"This stays between us, okay?" Of course, this would have been the perfect time to use her menace, but strangely, she didn't.

"Um... Okay..." And with that note, Natsu left the guild.

Mirajane smiled to herself. The great Natsu, known as Salamander, was stressing over Lucy Heartfilia.

But the amount of confusion in his eyes was extremely disturbing. Mirajane didn't know what to make of it. Was this really all that new to him? Exactly how much had he been stressing? She could tell he had been thinking about it before. Natsu had answered the first two questions so confidently, and without the usual enthusiasm.

Too much stress was never good. In the long run, which was quite possible considering those two, it could cause serious problems. The few hours of sleep would add up, his appetite might be affected, his fighting less skillful... At least that's what would happen to normal people.

But she remembered that Natsu was _far_ from normal.

_Ah, what am I thinking? Natsu? Lose sleep over a girl? Unlikely. Lose his appetite? Extremely unlikely. __And affecting his fighting?_

_Impossible._

She decided to keep a close eye on Natsu. What he would do next was unpredictable. After all, he _was_ the son of a dragon.

* * *

Erza hummed yet again as she strung the decorations around town. She could go to the festival with Jellal! She inwardly squealed.

_Oh, dear. I'm growing soft. _And indeed she was. Her squealing, even when no one can hear her, was very unlike her. But everything was so perfect! Erza could hardly believe she was crying a couple hours ago.

When she hadn't seen Jellal at the place where she had met him, Erza quickly put her pet in her dorm, along with everything she had bought for it, and went to talk to the Master. She couldn't just give up, after all.

_"Master, I'm afraid I... made a mistake." She kept her eyes low._

_Makarov raised an eyebrow. It wasn't the fact that she had made a mistake that surprised him, but the fact that she was ashamed by it. Usually the Requip Mage did what she could to atone for it, __always keeping her head held high. _

_But she seemed extremely upset. "What mistake did you make, my child?" _

_"I-I met Jellal today in town, and... we talked." She __fidgeted._

_"You saw Jellal? What was he doing wandering around town?"_

_"I don't know." She admitted._

_"Hm..." Makarov rubbed his chin. "Is that all?"_

_"No! You see, I um..."_

_"What child?" He was getting just a bit impatient._

_"I... asked Jellal to take me to the festival tomorrow night." _

_Makarov said nothing, and merely closed his eyes. Erza played with her fingers, awaiting his response._

_"And?" _

_"And? He- he's a criminal! If someone saw him, we could get in trouble with the council!"_

_"Bah, screw the council!" He opened an eye and looked at her. "Enjoy the night with him. Do not worry about the council. We can deal with them if the time comes."_

_Erza looked at her master. Her face showed disbelief, but her eyes shone with hope. "R-really?!"_

_"Of course." The small man grinned._

_"T-thank you so much, Master!" She crushed him in a hug, which would have been delightful had she had not been wearing her armor, and ran out of the room._

_"Just don't get to rowdy child!"_

_He heard Erza snort. "Just who do you think I am? I'll do nothing of the sort!"_

"Erza!" A familiar voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Ah, good morning Lucy." She strung some flags onto the wire. "Do you need help with something?"

"Actually, that's just what I was gonna ask you."

Erza pondered that thought for a moment. "I believe I'm all set with the decorations, but I could use something to drink."

"Strawberry shake?" The Celestial Spirit Mage asked with a smile.

Erza smiled back. The girl knew her so well. "Sounds perfect."

"Alright." She skipped away, her boots tapping on the cement. "I'll be right back!"

**Hours later~**

Erza sighed in contentment as she hung up the last of the directions. She believed this year was her best work yet. Of course, the Requip Mage had every intention on putting a performance to match.

She got off the ladder, and discarded her empty cup.

_The strawberry shake was divine! _Erza mused. _She had even gotten it from my favorite store. _She would have to pay her thoughtful friend back somehow.

The scarlet-haired woman went back to the guild, clutching the towering empty boxes in her hands, and kicked opened the door to hear a deafening noise. Exhaustion showed through each and every eye, but so did excitement.

Everything was ready for tomorrow. Setting up on the actual night would only take a few hours, thanks to the immense work they did today. Stalls, costumes, floats, everything had already been made. (And, according to Makarov, took a rather large dent out of their funds.) The mages had their performances thought out, and the order arranged.

All that's left is to wait.

* * *

**Oh, gosh... This chapter was pretty long huh? xD But I really didn't want to drag out the Fantasia any longer. Next chapter will be the Fantasia (expect a long one!) and that will be the last you'll hear of it. The parade was really meant to establish couples. xD ****But I can't help but feel that I've thrown in some unnecessary information in this chapter...  
**

**As always, reviews are welcome! :)**

**Please look forward to the next chapter! *Waves* Good bye for now! ^.^**


	7. Bonus Chapter 1: A Day With Igneel

**Hi everyone! *waves* Just like I promised, I'm here with bonus chapter! :D **

**I'd like to give my sincerest thank yous to you all.*bows* For your follows, your favorites, and most especially, your reviews. ^.^ Of course, getting a new follow or favorite makes me very happy, but I really appreciate it when people take their time to give a quick little comment. It might not look like much, but when I read them, I feel so much better knowing that I'm writing it right. Does that make any sense to you? xD Either way, I'm extremely grateful. Please continue to read my fanfic!**

**And now, my present to you. :) I hope you like it!**

* * *

"Hey, Natsu." The blonde-haired mage interrupted his thoughts. She took the seat beside him and asked "What's up?"

"Oh, nothing much." Natsu rested his chin on the table. "Just thinking about Igneel."

"Oh..." Lucy's eyes turned sad.

Natsu quickly sat upright, and said frantically "Wait! I'm not sad!" He grinned to assure her.

Looking only half convinced, she said "Oh, alright. That's good to hear." She shifted uncomfortably. "Um... Is it okay if I ask what about Igneel you were thinking about?"

Natsu looked at her, surprised. No one had ever asked him about Igneel before. Not really. "Yeah, sure."

Lucy perked up, and waited. After Natsu was silent for a couple of seconds, she looked at him quizzically.

To her surprise, he smirked. "Weren't you gonna ask me?"

She abruptly punched him in the face, looking annoyed. "Idiot."

"Okay, I'll tell you." He mumbled through her fist. Lucy removed it, and he said "I was thinking about the days I had with him. You know, the fun stuff."

"Sounds interesting."

"Oh, yeah. We had fun like, every single day." He paused to look at her. "I could tell you if you want."

She didn't wait a single second before saying "Sure."

He tried to get as comfortable as he could in the wooden seat before starting, and cleared his throat. "Our days are usually something like this..."

* * *

"Roar of the..." The small child took a deep breath, his chest and cheeks considerably expanded, arms tucked in tightly, fists clenched.

_I can do this! _He thought to himself confidently, and then let loose."Fire Dragon!"

A tornado of fire struck the large rock in front of him, his target, and shattered into countless pieces, littering the ground with pebbles. The child cheered in delight, grinning, and hopped around in circles, crying out 'I did it! I did it!' over and over. He then turned around, and grinned at his foster parent. "See Igneel! I did it!"

His father looked him straight in the eyes, which were shining with pride, two little suns among his ferocious, scaly face. "Indeed, my child. You have done an excellent job." The dragon carefully nudged the boy with his nose, and he grasped it in response, hanging on like his life depended on it.

The child grinned into his face, and boasted "One day, Imma be strong like you!"

Igneel smiled in return, and said in his low, rough voice "Yes, Natsu. Someday, you will be strong. Very strong."

"Stronger than you!" Natsu moved slightly, enough so the dragon could see that mischevious look on his face.

Despite the dragon being centuries older than the child, he could not help but defend his pride. "Never." The dragon reached out to poke him, but Natsu danced out of the way, and stuck his tongue out. He quickly ran into the trees, pink hair bouncing along.

"Coward!" Igneel growled playfully, and lumbered after him.

"Nya nya nyanya nya!"

"Come back here!" The dragon shouted, and looked around. The child had run into smaller places, places he could not reach nor see.

Suddenly, the dragon grinned. He had thought of the perfect bait. "Unless you're too scared to face me!" Igneel roared loudly.

Sure enough, it worked. Natsu's familiar-colored hair came into view, as he yelled defiantly "Nuh-uh! Roar of the..."

"Oh no you don't." Igneel quickly caught Natsu between his paws, and spun him around. The child quickly stopped his magic, his face pale, and dizzy from the sudden motion. Natsu watched in embarrassment and dismay as his dad rolled around the grass, howling in laughter. After getting over his nausea, he joined in. After all, few things in the world were more comical than a humongous dragon rolling around in grass.

Now it was Igneel's turn to be embarrassed. The dragon cleared his throat, and said "Alright, fun time's over." He carefully picked up the child between his forepaws, and walked upright back to the clearing.

"Hey, no fair! I was just getting started!" The boy protested as the ground moved below him.

"Now now, it's time for your studies." The dragon knew the boy couldn't stay with him forever, and would have to go to the the human world eventually, so he tried his best to keep the child educated. Igneel smiled as Natsu's face turned from protesting to horror. The child immediately started flailing around, and yelled "Idon'twannaIdon'twannaIdon'twannaIdon'twanna!"

When Natsu saw that Igneel wasn't gonna budge anytime soon, he took careful aim, looked up, and yelled "Roar of the Fire Dragon!"

The flames went straight up the dragon's nostrils, disappearing into their dark depths in a flash of light. Though the fire didn't hurt the scaly beast, it tickled him quite ferociously, and the dragon let out a monstrous sneeze, shaking the earth and causing leaves to rain down months before their time.

Natsu fell to the ground and ran back into the trees, laughing and tripping hysterically as he went.

"NATSU!" The large dragon ran faster than you would ever think possible after the boy, defying Earthland's natural forces as he moved like a blur.

Natsu ran as fast as he could, grinning the whole while. He was so smart! But he had to find a place to hide, quick.

When he heard loud, thundering footsteps behind him, he ducked into the nearest cave, burying himself in its darkness. He snuggled into the corner, trying his hardest to keep quiet. He could tell that his father was very, very close. And dragon senses weren't anything to laugh at.

"Natsu, where are you?..." He heard Igneel say. "Ah well, guess he's not here..." The footsteps started again, and slowly faded.

Natsu grinned, and cautiously peered out of the cave's opening.

"GOTCHA!" The dragon leaped out from behind a tree, and the boy shrieked. Natsu tried to get away, but was stopped short when when Igneel caught him between his paws and spun him again, but this time, twice as hard. "Ha!" The dragon said triumphantly. Natsu teetered on his feet, his face a sickly green.

Suddenly, Igneel and Natsu heard a steely, faraway voice, that snorted "So you beat a human child! Big deal!"

Igneel twisted his large head towards the sound, and roared "Silence! Metalicana!" He looked away. "Stupid dragon." Igneel muttered to himself.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Natsu try to creep away, his face still slightly green. "You are not getting away child." He picked up Natsu, this time creating a dome with his paws that encased the boy. "Now, it's time to hit the books."

"How 'bout burn 'em?" He heard Natsu mumble.

"Absolutely not." Getting human books was a pain for the dragon. He slightly opened his paws to peek at Natsu. "And if you do, I'll spin you so hard that you'll make a hole in the ground that leads to the other side." Natsu tried to use his magic again, intending to hit the dragon's eye, but he quickly closed his paws, feeling the familiar warmth tickle his talons. Natsu coughed, and Igneel could imagine him glaring.

As soon as they reached the clearing, Igneel plopped the child in front of the tree stump they used as a table, and reached under the large hollow between its roots to retrieve the books that were inside.

"I don't wanna read." Natsu pouted. He turned away, refusing to look at the books in front of him.

Igneel sighed. He could be so difficult sometimes.

The dragon leaned closer to Natsu, and said "If you read, I'll teach you a new attack later."

The young boy immediately brightened up. "Wow, really?!"

"Does the one and only Igneel ever break his promises?" To his far, far right, he heard a soft voice chime "Oh, stop it Igneel."

Igneel craned his neck toward the voice and yelled "Silence! Grandeeney!" He turned back around and mumbled "Annoying female."

"What will you teach me this time, Igneel?" The boy broke into the dragon's thoughts.

He thought for a moment. "Fist of the Fire Dragon. And after you learn this, you will know many others." After all, if he could focus his flames in his fist, why not his feet? His arms? His elbows? The dragon grinned. "So you're learning more than one new attack."

Natsu's eyes glittered in excitement, and he fidgeted in his seat. "Okay! I'll read!"

"Good boy." He nudged the books closer to Natsu. "If you read at least one of these from cover to cover, than I shall teach you the new attack."

"Okay!" He set to work immediately, concentrating in the faded text.

A few hours later, he was done. Natsu thrust the books beneath the stump, and looked at the dragon eagerly, only to become baffled when he realized the big lizard wasn't there. The boy glanced at the ground, seeing a wide trail of flattened grass leading into the trees. Curious, and impatient to learn the new attack, he followed it.

The child walked on for a couple minutes, eventually seeing the familiar red dragon, who bowing over something Natsu couldn't see. "Igneel!"

"Ah, hello child." The dragon turned around, and the child saw a small, white bundle in his paws.

"What's that?" Natsu rushed over, wondering what that bundle was.

He gave the bundle to his son, and said proudly "It is a gift for you." Pride swelled in the dragon's chest as the child unfolded the bundle, revealing it as a scarf. Natsu's eyes widened, and then glowed with happiness. He immediately rushed over to his father, and squeezed as much of his foreleg as he can between his small arms.

"Thank you, Igneel! You're the best!" He looked up at Igneel's face, happiness overflowing from the child in massive waves.

A pleasant growl rumbled in the dragon's throat. "You're very welcome, my son." He laid on his stomach, and nudged the boy with his nose. "Work hard, and grow strong. To protect what's important to you."

Natsu wrapped the scarf around his neck, the new article making him looking older than he is. He then looked Igneel straight in the eye, unwavering, and said "I will."

"Good." His growls shook the earth, overwhelmed with pride. "Now, let's go hunting."

He grinned up at him. "Okay!"

* * *

"And then we went hunting." Natsu shrugged.

"What?! I wanna hear more!" Lucy whined.

He made a face. "It wasn't exactly pretty. But I guess if you really wanted to I could..."

"NO! No! Never mind." Lucy face-palmed, grimacing. "So... is that all?"

He looked thoughtful for a moment, and said "Well, at night he used to do a bunch of cool stuff..."

"Tell me!" Lucy pleaded. Natsu smiled, thinking how childish she looked.

"Okay." He agreed. "So when night fell..."

* * *

"Natsu, come here." The dragon lay down in the grass on his side, one big eye looking at his child.

"Okay Igneel!" The little boy scurried over to the lizard, and sat on the grass in front of him, leaning against the dragon's stomach. Together they looked at the stars in the sky, twinkling brightly, no matter how ancient they were.

"Natsu, do you remember the names of the stars?"

The dragon's stomach jiggled slightly while Natsu bobbed his head up and down. "Uh-huh!" He pointed at a large constellation in the sky. "That one is Big Dragon!" He shifted his finger, pointing to another. "That one is Big Spoon!" Moving his hand every now and then, the child continued to recite all the names of the constellations, each and every one visible from the clearing. "The Two Same People, Little Dragon, The Fish, The Mermaid..."

* * *

Natsu discontinued his story, aware that Lucy was on the verge of falling off her seat, caught in fits of laughter that shook her frail body. He frowned at her. "What's so funny?"

"Oh, dear god, it's just.." She gasped, tears trickling from her eyes. "Igneel told you the wrong names! The Two Same People!" She howled. "Idiot! It's Gemini!"

Natsu's face reddened, and he turned indignant. "So what? Igneel's names sound _way _better!"

"Big Dragon..." She muttered. "It's Ursa Major! 'Big _Bear_!"

"I always thought it kinda look like a bear..." He remembered Igneel's insisting tone when he told the dragon that, repeatedly saying it was, in fact, dragon.

He then glared at Lucy, realizing there's no way he could continue if she kept laughing so loudly. "You want me to finish or not?!" He demanded, slightly pouting.

Her laughter gradually subsided, and she waved her hand at him and said "Oh, sure. Please do."

Natsu rolled his eyes and continued, altogether skipping the rest of the star watching.

* * *

"Okay little one. It's time to sleep." He gently wrapped his tail around the child, being extremely careful to keep his spikes well away from him.

He heard Natsu give a soft yawn, and say "Can you tell me a story first?"

"Alright, child." He searched through his ancient mind, finally deciding on an old, old dragons' tale.

"Once upon a time, there was a dragon. A kind, strong dragon, that every other dragon loved."

"Is it you?" Natsu mumbled sleepily.

Igneel chuckled slightly. "Although that description fits me rather well, I'm sorry to say that it isn't." He glanced at the child, due to fall asleep any second now. "It is the King."

"...King...?" So very, very close.

"Yes." The dragon said, slightly nodding. "So the King..." He stopped and let his words fade into the night, seeing that the child was fast asleep.

_It's always like this. _He thought amusedly as he tightened his grip around the small boy. _I can never speak more than a few sentences before sleep steals him away from me._ He looked up at the sky, the stars twinkling back at him. _Why must you be so cruel? Oh Starry Sky?_

The Fire Dragon looked up at the night sky for a few extra moments before resting his head on the ground, and closed his eyes. Natsu's sleep was contagious.

The sound of their snores filled the night, as the two lay side by side, dreaming wonderful dreams.

* * *

Lucy paused a moment, seeming to be in deep thought. "Igneel sounds like a really great father."

"The best." Natsu confirmed, nodding in agreement. But then he said quickly "Your mom sounds really cool too!"

"The best." Lucy said softly.

They sat in a silence for a few moments, thoughts of their family running through their minds.

Lucy asked quietly "...So that's how you got your scarf?"

"Yup. Used magic or something to make it."

Lucy smiled. "That's pretty cool."

Natsu scoffed. "Psh, everything Igneel does is cool."

"Even when he spins you around like that?" Lucy said deviously. "I wonder if that's why you have motion sickness..."

She chuckled as Natsu's face turned as white as a ghost's. "N-no..." The Dragon Slayer couldn't bring himself to believe that his personal weakness was caused by his loving father. As Lucy laughed, a dark, disturbing thought echoed in his mind. _How could you do that to me, Igneel?!_

** ~The End~**

* * *

**I really hope you liked reading it! ^.^ I was cracking up in some places... xD**

**Since this bonus chapter was about Igneel and Natsu, you could probably guess what the next two will be about. :D **

**Thank you very much for everything! As always, reviews and such are GREATLY appreciated~! **

**Good bye, good people of the world! *Waves* I'll be back soon!**


	8. Chapter 7: Take Me Away

**Hi everybody! Thanks for sticking with me up until now ^.^ **

**It's time for Fantasia! I know I said this already, but expect it to be a loooong chapter. Got lots to say c: **

**And I also wanted to say that I plan on drawing scenes from Crossfire. Somehow, someday, I'll create a full out manga for it ^.^ But not anytime soon. I'll let you know if I draw anything c: **

**Nothing else to say, so... Enjoy chapter 7!**

* * *

"Alright brats, ya' know what today is?!" Makarov's voice boomed at his children.

"FANTASIA!"

"That's right! And you better enjoy it, 'cuz the life of a mage is a short one. I don't wanna see no tears, no frowns, no nu'in. You see a townsperson break these rules, you _best_ get your ass over there and a smile on their face! Any of you brats break it, you gonna go through 'that'!" Groans of dismay echoed throughout the room. Those who have already experienced it trembled in fear.

"'_That_' is truly terrifying..." Erza mumbled under her breath.

Lucy looked over at her incredulously, shaking rather badly herself. "You guys never even told me what 'that' is!" What kind of punishment could scare even Erza?

Makarov continued his speech. "Tonight, there are no worries. Laughter will echo throughout the town, filling every corner, every building, and every_one. _And you brats will be the source! Laugh, frolick, do whatever this generation does to express happiness!" He then gave a stern look to Lucy. "But don't get too frisky!"

"Why are you lookin' at me?!" Her jaw dropped, embarrassment and shock written all over he face. Everyone looked at her strangely, and some chuckled.

"You're all so mean..." Lucy sobbed.

"Awww..." Cana whined from the far corner of the room. "Way to ruin it, Gramps!" The guild erupted in laughter at the woman's usual vulgarity.

"Cana, those were for the festival!" Mirajane scolded. An empty barrel lay on its side by the woman's feet, and a second was currently being drained.

"Eeeehh?... But I'm thirsty..."

The Takeover Mage was about to retort something when the master cleared his throat, and all eyes turned back on him.

"Also..." He pointed a finger at his children. "You put on a show that the citizens of this town will never forget! You hear me?!"

"WE HEAR YA'!" Fists pumped in the air, and their cheers were almost deafening.

"Good." He hopped down from his balcony, and sat at his usual spot on the bar. "Now get the damn thing ready for tonight. I want no complications!"

Chorus's of agreement were shouted back at him, and they scurried off to prepare for the festival. The eager members were setting up stalls faster than you can say their name. Upon walking out, scattered cheers from the citizens echoed in their ears, no doubt excited for the event. The Strauss's worked diligently in the kitchen, getting as much of the food ready as they can before the festival, preparing the pastries and laying out ingredients for the hot foods.

An hour later, everything was all set to go. The lanterns were hung and lit (by Natsu, of course), the stalls set up, and the floats put into order. All the mages left the site to prepare themselves for the festival.

"Lucyyyyyyyy..." Levy moaned.

Lucy looked at her friend, shocked. She was practically _dragging _herself through the street. "A-are you okay?"

"A bunch of people said they were coming over..." Her head hung low, and Lucy could easily imagine tears pooling at her feet.

"Oh, gosh... Well, I'll be sure to help you out, just like I said I would." Lucy flashed Levy a reassuring smile, and Levy jumped on her, shrieking rapidly in delight.

"ThankyousomuchLu-cahnyouarethebestItotallylov eyoulet'sgotomydormrightawayandprepa re!" She immediately began dragging the poor blonde by the wrist towards Fairy Hills, whose protesting whimpers were deaf to the Script Mage's ears.

* * *

Natsu strolled through the plaza with Happy, kicking around pebbles out of sheer boredom. Everything had already been set up. He wished the festival would just come already.

His blue-furred friend hummed as he trotted along, mumbling something about fish and Carla. The cat was clutching the pillow that was hanging around his neck, for Happy had hidden and stored his reward money in it, saving up jewels just for the festival.

"Hey, Happy." Natsu glanced at him, suddenly curious.

"Aye Natsu?"

"Is Carla going with you to the festival?"

He nodded, and said "Aye. Carla said she'd go with me, but only if I made sure she'd have fun." The cat smiled to himself, thinking of all the things he had planned for their date. The cat then looked up at Natsu, smirking. "I hear you asked out Lucy." He paused, then teasingly sang "You _liiiiiiiiiiike _her."

Natsu only stared at him. "Of course I do. She's my friend."

"Nu-uh Natsu." The cat shook his head. "It's more than that. The way you treat her, the way you look at her, it's all different." He paused. "She does too."

Natsu froze. Was it possible that Lucy, his Lucy, the Lucy that sends him flying through windows, the Lucy that smashes him against walls with her foot, the Lucy that was always yelling at him, liked him?

"No way." He suddenly felt upset after saying those words, and vowed right there to himself to never say it again.

Happy shook his head. "She doesn't know." Natsu looked at Happy quizically, unsure of what he meant. But the cat didn't notice him, trapped in his own thoughts.

The Exceed was far from a love expert, but even he could tell that his two partners had different something between them. Something strong, deep. But both were unaware of it, and that made Happy kind of sad. The cat wasn't sure why though.

Natsu glanced worriedly at Happy, who seemed a bit sad. "You okay, Happy?"

"Aye." The cat said robotically.

Natsu pondered the issue, thinking of the best way to cheer his friend up. "Oh, I know! You wanna go fishing?"

He immediately brightened up, and yelled "Aye!" The two friends dashed into the forest, fish on their minds.

* * *

Levy and Lucy worked hard to prepare Levy's book-cluttered dorm, leaving as much space as possible for their on-paying customers. Mirajane came much earlier than expected, and helped them out. Pretty soon, there was a decent amount of cleared floor to work with, and Lucy summoned Cancer to go over the plan. Cancer would do haircuts, Levy would choose the hairdos, and all three girls would do the actual styling. Their stations were set up throughout the room, each supplied as necessary. All that was left was to let the girls in.

"So... should we let them in now?" Lucy cringed at all the racket behind Levy's door.

The bluenette sighed. "Now's a good time as any Lu-chan."

"We're ready right?" Mirajane asked nervously.

"It seems so, shrimp."

Levy took a deep breath, and placed her hand on the door knob. The others stood up, trying not to look nervous.

The door clicked open, and, to Lucy's surprise, there seemed to be only a few. They smiled and waved, looking rather excited.

Mirajane read her thoughts, and said grimly "Look outside."

Lucy gulped, and headed towards the door. "Nope." The white-haired woman said "The window."

She obeyed, and had the window not been closed, she would've _fallen_ out, as she saw a line of girls, standing _outside_ the dorm. Were there really so many that they couldn't fit in the lobby?

Levy's instructions to their customers sounded distant as Lucy sank into the couch. It will be a _long_ night.

* * *

"_Jellal-kuuuun~_" Meredy sang. "I hear you agreed to hang out with Erza at the festival." The pink-haired girl winked, and Jellal did a face-palm.

"I swear to God, I didn't mean to! It just kinda... slipped out." And it was the truth. Every corner of Jellal's mind had insisted that he absolutely could not do such a thing, but his heart, his soul, and every _other_ bit of him wanted to, which led to him unconsciously agreeing.

"Jellal, I'm really glad you found a love-life, but it's just too risky." Ultear said solemnly. The dark-haired woman was sitting high in a tree, her legs dangling off the branch.

Jellal sputtered. "L-love life?!"

"Yeah, such a shame, huh?"

"Wait, I don't-"

"Lies." They both grinned.

"You obviously like her. It's written all over your face!" Meredy snorted.

Jellal groaned, and slammed his forehead against the nearest tree.

"If the council finds you, they'll probably jail you again and we might not be able to get you out. And Fairy Tail may no longer be recognized by the council for 'aiding' a criminal."

"A Dark Guild?!" Jellal's face turned to horror. Fairy Tail? A Dark Guild? "But it's not- they're not aiding me in doing anything!"

"Technically, they are." Meredy pointed out. "Fairy Tail saw you, and instead of reporting you to the council, they allowed you to stay at the festival."

"Oh, God." Jellal paced back and forth, worry etched in his face. "Oh dear God, I'm screwed."

"We know." They said at the same time. Jellal had to resist hitting his head against the tree again. Like mother, like daughter.

"UGH! It's bad, I know! But I can't just back out!" The blue-haired mage briskly walked back in forth among the clearing, trying to figure out a solution.

"Sure you can." Ultear said bluntly. "You just don't want to."

"How can I hurt Erza again?" His face was pained, and the two women were sympathetic.

"Would you rather hurt her, or the entire guild?" Ultear jumped off the branch, landing silently on the ground. "Erza's strong. She'd be able to handle it."

Jellal knew all too well just how strong she was. He had hurt her the most, left the deepest scar, yet she could still smile in that rambunctious guild of hers. And he was glad.

"Come on, Mom, just tonight? Please?" Meredy begged her foster mother, hating to see Jellal so upset. "We can always save him right?"

Ultear furrowed her brow. "There's a small chance that we could rescue him if the time comes, but saving Fairy Tail from their punishment is impossible." She looked at Jellal. "This is your decision, and we'll support whatever you choose. But know that the risks are extremely high."

Jellal bit his lip, trying to think of the best solution. He looked at the ground, shying away from rom their expecting gaze.

Moments passed in silence, and he finally he said "...I want to go." He said it slowly, but surely. There was no moving him.

Meredy and Ultear gave sad smiles. This could very well be the last time they see him.

"But..." Jellal looked sternly at the two woman. "This is solely my problem. If I get in trouble, just leave. Don't try to save me or anything. I can't let you guys get in trouble."

"But-" Meredy protested, but was cut off by her mother. "Alright."

"Mom!"

"I'm sorry, Meredy, but I can't let you go to jail." If it was just her, Ultear would gladly risk his life to save him, but she was not alone. She had a daughter to take care of.

Ultear watched as Meredy placed a Sensory Link on her shoulder, then slowly disappear as her feelings were silently conveyed to Meredy. She gave Ultear a sad smile, understanding her mother's protective thoughts. Though the girl's personality had developed vastly during 7 years, there were still times where she didn't understand people. Her magic was her way of doing so. It was very clumsy, but much like Meredy.

Jellal nodded. "Good." He then turned and walked away, heading toward Fairy Hills.

Or so he thought. He inwardly groaned as Meredy and Ultear said monotonously in sync "The girls' dorm is the other way."

"Same difference!" He stalked towards the other direction, but gave a last smile over his shoulder before truly leaving. "Thanks! Ultear, Meredy!"

"Don't mention it!" Meredy shouted between cupped hands.

"Take care of yourself, Jellal." Ultear said, her gaze piercing his eyes.

"I will." He promised.

_I really hope I don't break that promise. _He thought grimly. _Fairy Tail is at stake._

* * *

Lucy sighed as she flopped onto the couch, exhausted with the day's work. Not only did she help for 3 hours straight, she had to keep Cancer's gate open for the whole time.

She turned towards the crab spirit. "Thanks a lot Cancer! I owe you one!" And she knew she did. No being could deal with squealing, demanding women for 3 hours and enjoy it.

"Anytime, shrimp." He then disappeared in a flash of light, leaving nothing behind.

"Are we all set for the festival?" Levy asked. "I could do some last-minute styling."

Lucy glanced at herself in the mirror. Her hair had miraculously survived the ordeal untouched. "Nah, I think I'm good."

There was a light knock, and they froze. There weren't still more, were there?

"Levy-san!" Came a familiar, high pitched voice.

Levy dashed over to the door and let the young girl in. "Hello, Wendy!" The girl was wearing her usual outfit, and her usual pigtails, but they could tell she did her hair more carefully than usual. And, as the three noted, Carla wasn't with her.

"Hi Levy-san!" She peeked in, and saw the other two women, who smiled and waved. "Mirajane-san, Lucy-san!"

"Hello Wendy!" The two replied enthusiastically.

"Is there anything you need Wendy?" The blue-haired girl turned back to Levy.

"Yes! Chico-san told me to tell everyone that anyone who is getting picked up must wait in the lobby." The three nodded. That was understandable. Who would want a bunch of men running through the halls?

"Well, I should get going now." Mirajane stepped out the door.

"Wait, you don't have a date?"

"I thought Freed would've asked you or something..."

The white-haired girl chuckled. "I caught him staring a couple times, but he never approached me. Guess he couldn't work up the guts to." She began walking down the hall. "Maybe next year!"

"Bye Mirajane!" The three girls said in unison, with the exception of Wendy who added her little 'san' at the end."

She waved over her shoulder. "Bye girls!"

She disappeared, Levy laughed. "She's not really leaving yet."

"What?" Wendy and Lucy asked.

"Mirajane. She always stays in the lobby to make sure every girl who's waiting gets picked up. And at the proper time." Levy mused. "Any guy who took out a Fairy Tail Mage before knows that coming late means dealing with her." She snorted. "And not coming at all means a certain demon's wrath."

"...S-scary..."

The Script Mage clapped her hands together. "Alright! Let's get downstairs!"

"I can't go just yet, but I'll meet you there soon." Wendy glanced down the hall. "I still have to deliver my message to a few people."

"You need any help?"

She shook her head, but was grateful for the offer. "No, thank you. I only have a few more rooms left."

"Oh, alright." Lucy and Levy waved, and walking making their way to the lobby. "If you need any help, just call us!"

"I will!" She promised. She dashed down the hall, pigtails streaming behind her.

The two women made their way down the stairs and into the lobby, Fairy Tail mages sitting around the comfortable room here and there.

"...There were a lot more people here about 7 years ago." Levy said quietly.

Lucy looked at her friend sadly. She knew that many mages had left the guild during their absence, due to the lack of money and the jeering they got from other guilds. Without their strongest members, Fairy Tail was greatly weakened, and were being abused by Twilight Ogre. (They were quickly... 'dealt' with though.)

"It's alright. I bet people will come back to join later!"

"...Maybe..."

Lucy lightly slapped her friend on the back. "Don't looks so down! Who knows what Gajeel will do if he sees you with a face like that."

Levy gave a small smile,and said "Yeah, you're right." She then laughed. "Imagine if he comes here wearing that white suit of his..."

Lucy laughed as well. "I'd feel bad for you, having to walk around with a guy dressed like that."

Levy didn't say anything, being the kind soul she is, but Lucy knew she agreed.

The two sat down on an unoccupied sofa, and waited for their dates to show up.

Soon, Wendy had finished her errand and sat and waited with them. They soon found out where Carla was (she decided to wait at the guild) and chatted about the festival as minutes ticked by.

One by one, the women were getting picked up by their dates. Lucy was surprised, awed, and just straight out _terrified_ at how strong Mirajane's hold was even after 7 years, for none had dared come late. Out of the three of them, Wendy was the first to go, greeted by a shy Conbolt who took her arm and led her out. Next was Gajeel, who was dangerously close to being late, and sporting that white suit he loved so much. Lucy watched as Levy's face turned horrified, no matter how badly she tried to hide it behind her small hands, as the Script Mage realized her worst fear had come true. But before the Dragon Slayer could say a single word, he was promptly greeted by Mirajane, who yelled his name, dragged him to the nearest bathroom (women's, Lucy noted) and shoved him back out, wearing his normal clothing.

He scowled at Mira, but quickly took Levy by the wrist and proceeded to dragging her out the door.

Soon, Lucy saw Jellal come into the lobby, much to her surprise. Catching her stare, the blue-haired man quickly pulled Erza out of the room, leaving both her and Mira dumbfounded.

Half an hour later, Lucy was the only one left. She watched out of the corner of her eye as Mira paced the room back and forth, clearly agitated.

_Natsu, where are you...? _She was angry, sad, and afraid all at once. Of the three, fear dominated. Angry that he dared come late, seeing he was the one who asked her, sad because he couldn't even bother to show up on time, and afraid of what Mirajane would do to him when he did come. If he came at all.

_Gosh Lucy, don't think that! _Lucy silently reprimanded herself. Natsu was an idiot, to be sure, but he always kept his promises. She looked down at her hands, tears threatening to slip through their fingers.

She quickly blinked them away. Why was she crying? She already knew he would come.

"Natsu..." Mirajane growled. Lucy's head snapped up to see the Dragon Slayer, stumbling through the doorway, half-covered in dirt.

Lucy could have done a number of things. She could have yelled at him for being late, she could have jumped him out of relief that he was here, or she could have just plain given him a Lucy Kick. But she instead decided to fuss over his soiled appearance. "Natsu, what the heck were you doing?" Lucy shrieked.

He met her gaze. "Fishing." He said simply. He then muttered "Stupid cat left me behind..." They two were out in the woods, but Happy had suddenly looked up at the sky and yelled "It's getting late!" and quickly zoomed off towards the guild, yelling over his shoulder "You better get to Lucy, Natsu!" The Fire Mage had done what his friend suggested, but being rather deep in the woods, it had taken him a while to get here.

He quickly broke off from Lucy's gaze to see a rather angry, dark looking Mirajane. "Natsu!" She yelled. He tried to get away, but she caught him by the scarf and dragged him to the (women's) bathroom. Lucy cringed as she heard a few of those familiar pummeling sounds she hears so often in the guild, water running, and a couple shouts in behalf of Natsu. He then shot out the bathroom straight through the door with a crash, leaving a large hole in the wood and a pink-haired mage with his head buried in the brick surface of the chimney, burning brightly directly across from the bathroom.

A rather cross-looking Mirajane stomped out of the bathroom, but she gave her sweetest smile to Lucy and said "I hope you have fun Lucy!~" She then looked at Natsu, who had removed his head from the chimney and was brushing the rubble from his hair. Still using the familiar, motherly tone, she told him "Make sure you take care of your date!" But her voice dripped venom, a very clear threat of annihilation if he did anything otherwise.

Natsu mumbled something Lucy couldn't hear, and Mira flashed one last smile at the dumbfounded blonde before leaving. It was only then Lucy noticed that all the dirt that was on him before was now replaced by water.

"N-Natsu?... What exactly did she do?..."

Natsu swung his elbows around, and Lucy heard a sickening crack. "Oh, nothing much. She only tried to drown me in a sink, dyed the skin beneath my clothes purple with her fists, and flung me into a chimney." Natsu peeled his vest to reveal a rather ugly, purple bruise on his left side.

Lucy cringed. That wasn't disappearing anytime soon.

A couple seconds later, she found herself thinking that Natsu was leaving his vest open just a bit longer than needed. (Open more than it already was) Her face flushed, and she turned away.

Silence ruled the room the next few moments, and she turned to look back at Natsu only to find that he was only a couple inches away from her face. "Lucy, your face was red. Ya' sick?" God, he was so, _ridiculously_, close.

She backed up slightly. "N-no!"

He leaned back. "Your eyes too. Like you were crying."

Lucy bit her lip. Her two seconds of threatening tears had left a mark. "I'm not..."

"Look, if someone made you cry, I can go beat them up." He said earnestly.

Anger flared up inside her. _The dense fool!_ She screamed in her mind. _It was you!_

But the anger quickly dissapated. How could she tell him that? Even if he didn't know it was his fault, she found it kind of sweet that he would be so willingly to do something like that for her.

Oh god, this was too confusing. Was she angry or not?

Just to make things easier for the night, she chose the latter. "I'm perfectly fine, idiot!" She crossed her arms. "Just take me somewhere already!"

Natsu grinned. "Alright." He slowly took her hand and led her out the dorm. They stepped out into the fading light, the sun setting and casting a warm glow on the dorm, and began walking over to the site of the festival.

Soon, their walk became more of a run. And within seconds, it was as if they were sprinting for their lives.

Lucy looked down at the strong hand around hers. So warm, so inviting.

Just like the hand that brought her to Fairy Tail.

* * *

**Waah... I'M SO SORRY EVERYONE! I know I said this was going to be the last chapter for Fantasia, but I just wrote the whole thing out and I couldn't bring myself to post an 8,000 word chapter when my first was only 2,000. I'm sorry! I'll update the other one immediately to make up for it. D:**

**As always, reviews are welcome! Thanks for reading!**


	9. Chapter 8: Fireworks

**Three updates at once... Don't expect this often xD But this is definitely the last chapter for Fantasia. And I'm giving you a little surprise out of this, so I hope these three chapters were worth it. C: Enjoy chapter 8**!

* * *

"So, Shrimp, what the heck are you supposed to do at this kinda place?" Gajeel and Levy were strolling through the road, people bustling and stopping at the stalls that lined the sidewalk. The Dragon Slayer had a fist on his hip and his arm swung casually as he walked. Levy had her hands behind her back, her petite figure struggling to keep up with Gajeel's long strides.

She grinned up at him. "You have fun!" Before Gajeel could say anything, she grabbed his wrist and began yanking him through the crowd, much like he had done with her before, and scanned the stalls for something entertaining.

"O-oi! Shrimp-"

"Gajeel!" She pointed at a large, stuffed panda hanging from a nearby stall. "Can you win that for me? Please?"

They slowed to a stop at the stall, and Gajeel saw that it was a game where you threw wooden balls at dishes a couple meters away, trying to break them. Looked easy enough.

"How much?" He asked the stall owner.

He winked at Gajeel, an act that he found highly disturbing. "You're a Fairy Tail mage, right?"

Before Gajeel could even utter so much as a sound, the owner quickly said "Well, I could already tell that you are."

_Then why the freak did you ask? _Gajeel thought. He scowled at the stall owner.

"For you, my boy, free! But..." He reached out behind him, and set a weird pair of glasses on the counter. "Only if you wear these! That is my challenge!"

"Challenge?" He picked up the glasses, and tossed them in his hand.

Levy lightly tugged at his arm. "The games at the festival are free for Fairy Tail mages, but only if they take the challenge. The mage cannot use magic, but if they win, they could pick any prize they want, no matter how hard it was."

"Oh hoh! You know quite a bit missy!" The owner winked at Levy, who immediately hid behind Gajeel, and earning him a fierce glare from a certain Iron Dragon Slayer.

"A-and all the challenges are approved by the master himself, to make sure that they're fair..." She continued from behind Gajeel.

"Alright." Gajeel slipped the glasses over his eyes, and swore. "Shit! There's three of everything!" And, much to his dismay, three of the creepy stall owners as well.

All three men winked at him. Triple disturbing. "It may look like there's three of everything, but there's still only the same amount, and in the same place. You're challenge is to break at least three plates in only three tries." He felt the smooth surface as something round was tucked into his hand.

He raised his arm, and was about to hurl the ball at a random dish when the owner shrieked "WAIT! Let me get out of the way first!" He quickly moved aside behind a small door in the stall, and watched through a crack.

Levy grimaced. The timing at which Gajeel's hand was about to release, speed, and the angle, almost assured Levy that, had he not been stopped, the owner would have been nailed straight in the head. With a wooden ball, no less.

When the owner got out of the way, Gajeel aimed his arm again, and hurled the ball. He smiled as he heard a satisfying crash, but was puzzled by a strange sound that quickly followed it, and a woman's scream.

He turned to look at the three Levy's, who seemed to be wincing. "Uh... Shrimp? What did I just do?"

"U-um... I think we should just..." He heard a couple angry shouts, and people running. He then felt small hands push him from behind, steering him away from the booths. "Run!" He saw Levy pull him by the wrist at an astonishing speed away from the stall.

He stumbled over a foreign object. "W-wait! Shrimp! I can't see!"

"Just run!" She yelled, sounding panicked. "I'm sorry!" She shouted over her shoulder. Footsteps were getting louder. He turned around to glance behind him, and momentarily forgetting that he was wearing triple quantity glasses, hissed in surprise at the what seemed to be a mob of Magnolians chasing after them. Thinking fast, he ran ahead and slung Levy over his shoulder, who shrieked.

"Eek! Gajeel!"

"Just shut up and run Shrimp!"

"How can I?! You're carrying me!"

"Pretend or something!" He growled.

"What the hell is that?!" She scoffed indignantly.

Their heated argument continued loudly as the two ran off, quickly leaving behind the four people that were chasing them.

* * *

"So, uh... Wendy-chan... Is there anything in particular you wanna do?" Romeo looked at the blue-haired girl beside him, and quickly looked away, his face flushed.

"Well... not really..." Back at Caitshelter, there were never any festivals or celebrations like this, so all this was new to her. "Is there anything you like to do?"

Romeo looked at her thoughtfully. "There's usually a magic competition. You have to hit a Magic Power Finder as hard as you can. The higher the number, the better your score."

"Sounds interesting." She commented truthfully.

He nodded. "I participate in it every year, just to see how much stronger I'm getting."

"Oh, really?" She looked at Romeo, slightly awed. "But I heard you guys didn't do it the past few years."

The dark-haired boy shrugged. "I went to other towns." He scratched the back of his head. "It's kinda become a tradition for me, really."

"That's pretty cool." She said sincerely.

Romeo blushed. "Ah, really?"

She smiled and nodded at him. "Yeah! A-and I bet you'll be stronger this year!" She added shyly.

He looked at her gratefully, not being able to find the right words to say thank you.

"Oh, is that it over there?" There was a large crowd of people standing around a fence, the middle of which floated the large, Magic Power Finder.

"Yep, that's it." He suddenly had an idea. Turning to Wendy, he said excitedly "You should participate too!"

"I-in front of all those people?!"

"You just got your second origin, right? This is a good way to test it out." He began gently pulling her towards the crowd. "It'll be fine! What can go wrong?"

"People will make fun of me..." Wendy murmured.

She was shocked when Romeo spun around to face her, and gripped her shoulders. "Wendy, you are _crazy_ strong. Strong enough to fight beside Nastu-nii." He grinned. "If anything, I'll be the one getting made fun of when you get a higher score than me."

"...Okay." She reluctantly agreed. She then gave him a small smile. "You sure you won't mind if I get a higher score than you?" She said teasingly.

He waved his hand dismissively. "If a girl younger than me is obviously stronger than I am, I deserve to be made fun of! I'm not holding back." He glanced at her. "You shouldn't either. Some of the people are really strong."

Was this a good time to try out that new technique she got from Porlyusica? "Alright!" Wendy said, this time, more confidently.

The two made their way through the crowd, just in time to see a man score 4,541. He pumped his fists triumphantly in the air, and the crowed roared.

"Is that a lot?" Wendy asked Romeo.

"Kind of. On average, most wizards get about 3,000. So that's pretty good." He leaned over and whispered in her ear "I still think you'd get more though."

Wendy shied away, her cheeks red. "H-how much do you think I'd get?"

He shrugged. "At least 7,000."

Wendy gasped, distantly watching Romeo call over the man who ran the competition.

_7,000?! That's 3,000 more than that other man... _Her head spun, thoroughly convinced that she was being overestimated.

"Hello! We'd like to enter!" Romeo gestured to himself and Wendy.

The man chuckled. "This is a competition kids, not a game."

Romeo scowled. This guy was annoying him. "So?"

"So I'm saying that you'll only embarrass yourselves." He waved them away. "Just go somewhere else! There's a nice fishing game not too far from here..."

"We might be young, but we are Fairy Tail mages! Underestimating us is not wise!" Romeo seethed.

The man chuckled again. "Alright, Kid. Suit yourself." He opened the the gate, and Romeo stomped through.

The dark-haired boy prepared his magic, and he heard over his shoulder "Hey, kid! You get at least 3,000, I take back what I said!"

"Fine!" He shot back. He got 2,778 last year. He can bring it up to 3,000.

He faced the Magic Power Finder, and took a deep breath.

_I can do this! _He thought to himself. _I'm a member of Fairy Tail! I can do anything!_

"Do your best! Romeo-kun!" He looked the Sky Dragon Slayer, and smiled gratefully at her the second time that night. All his doubts were erased.

He aimed at the large orb in the air, and yelled "Blue fire!"

His magic squarely struck its target, and the Magic Power Finder froze over.

As soon as the ice cracked and fell apart, the orb began calculating the magic power. Romeo held his breath, and closed his eyes.

He heard that familiar 'ting' sound, signaling that the orb was done. He slowly looked up, and his heart sank as he read the numbers left to right.

2...

9...

9...

9...?

The crowd was silent, but the man behind him howled with laughter, and yelled through gasps "Nice try Kid! Maybe next time!"

"YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS!" He roared. One point. One. Damn. Point.

"Geez, these Fairy Tail mages kinda suck, huh?"

"Yeah, I mean, not even 3,000?"

"That guy before had like, 4,500..."

Romeo's shoulders shook as he heard those nasty comments from the crowd. They were extremely common during the last 7 years, but no matter how many times he heard them, they still broke his heart.

"6,000." He heard a familiar voice say.

"Hah, hah... What kid?" The man's laughter subsided.

"6,000." Wendy repeated coldly. "If I get at least 6,000..." She turned to face the crowd. Her eyes were dark with fury, her tiny fists clenched. "You take back what you said about Fairy Tail! All of it!"

At first, various murmurs wove in and out of the crowd. But soon, those murmurs turned to laughter, accompanied by jeers.

"You, get 6,000?! Please!"

"Yeah little girl. I mean, you're like what, 10?"

"Dream on!"

Wendy ignored them, holding her head up high. She strode over to the Magic Power Finder, which had finished resetting itself.

"W-Wendy..." Romeo moved aside, making way for the angry Dragon Slayer. His eyes were clear, but a single tear glittered on his cheek.

"I got this, Romeo-kun!" Her magic slowly started pouring out of her small body, causing her pigtails to flutter from the wind. "No one makes fun of Fairy Tail and gets away with it!"

Rome backed away as Wendy began preparing her spell. _I love Fairy Tail... _She thought. She thrust her arms out beside her, spread out wide, and a blue magic circle spun furiously beneath her legs. _And I don't want Romeo to be sad... _She tapped into her second origin, and muttered "arms," instantly feeling strength build up in her muscles. Power swelled up inside her body, filling it with her newly-attained magic power, and threatening to burst.

_No one can hurt him! Or my guild! _"DRAGON SLAYER'S SECRET ART: SHATTERING LIGHT! SKY DRILL!" A large wind barrier that reached the sky surrounded her and the Magic Power Finder, blocking the action from the spectators' view. The ground shook with magical energy, and filled the air.

Wendy focused her magic power on the green orb, and willed the barrier to contract. She squeezed her eyes shut as the barrier hit the orb, pounding it relentlessly with blades of wind.

"Wendy!" Romeo yelled.

The crowd witnessed the scene in amazement, anxiously waiting for the barrier to clear up. Suddenly, strong winds rushed at them, and the people shielded themselves from it best they could.

When they looked again, and they saw a slightly battered Wendy, the barrier having disappeared. They held their breaths as the Magic Power Finder calculated her magic power, antagonizingly slow.

The orb tinged, and the crowd gasped as the number came into view.

9,999.

The crowd stayed silent, savoring the moment for as long as they could, making sure that it was reality.

The orb cracked, shattering into a thousand pieces, and dissipated into the air.

Wendy turned around, grinning triumphantly.

The crowd erupted in cheers, screaming the guild's name over and over. The owner merely gaped at her in shock, his jaws practically hitting the ground. "I-impossible..."

"We're Fairy Tail, Gramps. Nothing's impossible." Romeo gestured. "Aren't you going to announce the winner?"

The owner slowly closed his mouth, and muttered "Yes...yes, that's right..." He cleared his throat, and turned to face the audience. "The winner of this year's competition is..." He glanced at Wendy. "What's your name again?" He hissed.

"Wendy Marvell." She said loudly.

"Wendy Marvell!" He boomed, and several people laughed. "You may now receive your prize." He waved his hand, and a large orb rose up from the floor. "Put your hand on the orb kid. It'll read you and choose your prize accordingly."

"It... chooses for me?"

He shrugged. "Don't look so nervous. The orb never gave anyone something they didn't like. Just touch it."

Wendy slowly reached her hand out, and her fingers brushed against its smooth surface. She yanked her hand back as the orb glowed in response.

A large, glowing item appeared in the air, slowly falling in front of her. She placed her hands beneath the object to catch it, and a large, old-looking book materialized in her hands.

"A Book of Ancient Healing..." She murmured. Her eyes widened. "By... Grandeeney?!

"Oh? That's interesting." He peered over at the dusty tome. "Never seen someone get a book before."

She beamed at him, hugging the book to her chest. "Thank you so much!" She bowed, and quickly left the floor, Romeo following behind.

"Wait, Wendy! Where are you going?"

"I want to give this to Poryulusica-san!"

"The cranky old lady? Why?"

She spun around to face him, her eyes glittering with excitement. "She knows my Dragon!" She slowed down to a walk. "But I don't really want to read it yet."

Romeo stared. Wasn't she just running like her life depended on it for the book? Women were so confusing. "Why not?"

"Well... we're not really done yet, are we?" She looked at him, blushing slightly. "I mean, there's still another hour left... Before Fantasia..."

He grinned at her. "Of course! But since most of the stalls are closing down, we could just sit by the lake."

Wendy smiled. "I'd like that."

The two of them quickly rushed over to Poryulusica's house, anxious to drop off the book and spend up the rest of the night together.

* * *

Natsu cocked his headed as he heard loud cheers in the distance. "What's that?"

Lucy looked up at him, and said "What's what?"

He squeezed his hand around hers, still joined from their thrilling run a few hours before. The cheers had quickly died, leaving Natsu to think if he had ever really heard them at all. "Never mind."

The two of them were having nothing but fun the last few hours. They went around eating his favorite food, winning games, and, though he didn't know why it made her so happy, he won her a huge stuffed Plue. She was currently clutching it with her free arm, playfully rubbing it against her cheek. "Okay."

Natsu glanced up at the sky, looking at the stars. "It's getting late. They're gonna pack up soon."

"What!?" Lucy cried out in dismay. "But Fantasia isn't until another hour!"

He gave her a crooked grin. "We could sit by the lake."

Lucy had never seen the lake before. She had only ever seen the river than ran near their guild. "Sounds good."

They slowly made their way to the lake, Natsu guiding her.

She looked at his hand around hers, and smiled warmly. At first, she was a little reluctant about going around with their hands joined, but pretty soon, the mood of the festival got to her and she got used to it. Liked it, even.

Of course, there were the awkward moments. Such as when Elfman glanced at their hands and unexpectedly bellowed 'Holding hands is Man!' (earning him a slap from the giggling Lisanna), and when Bickslow shamelessly hollered 'Get a room already!' quickly followed by the chorus of his dolls. These moments embarassed Lucy to no end, but each time Natsu merely grinned at her and squeezed her hand, reassuring that it was okay.

And here they were now, holding hands like it was the most natural thing in the world. And maybe it was. It certainly felt like it.

But what surprised Lucy most was his calm, gentle demeanor during the whole night. Sure, he got a little overboard when they played the games, but nothing like his usual self. It was a side of him Lucy had never seen before. Of course, Lucy had never seen him smile so many times in one night either. They were honest smiles. Not as wild as his everyday ones, but more meaningful.

Soon, they reached the lake. Lucy gasped as she saw the large body of water, lapping at the shores. The dark surface glittered beneath the full moon, and the countless lanterns that were hung throughout the town only further enhanced it's beauty. Natsu sat down near the edge, pulling Lucy along with him. Both their legs dangled over the edge, almost touching the water. Lucy moved her stuffed Plue onto her lap, careful to keep the white fabric clean. She looked up at the sky, and gazed at the stars in wonder. You could see almost all the constellations from here!

"It's pretty, right?" Natsu sad quietly.

"It is..."

"I learned their-" He quoted in the air with his free hand, "-_real_ names." He scowled, remembering the day when Lucy had mocked him for saying the wrong names of the constellations.

Lucy laughed softly. Without meaning to, she shifted her hand so her fingers interlaced with his. "Care to tell me?"

He looked at her, slightly surprised, but began pointing out the constellations. He started off to the right, where a large, ladle shaped constellation glowed in the air. "Big dipper." He shifted his finger slightly, now pointing at a large, bear-shaped one. "Big bear."

"Ursa Major." She corrected him softly.

He playfully growled in response, pretending to be angry. "Same thing."

He continued pointing out the constellations, surprisingly, not getting a single one wrong, though he hardly ever used their scientific names.

Soon, there were none left to point out. They sat in comfortable silence, enjoying the coolness of the night.

Suddenly Natsu set his hand in fire. The sudden light caused Lucy to squint. "Natsu, what are you doing?..."

"Let's do it." Lucy looked at him, her eyes questioning.

"Fireworks." He looked back at her, and caught her gaze. "Let's make them, Lucy. Like we did for that block-guy Wally and his friends." He slowly stood up, pulling her to her feet. "Take your key out."

She silently obeyed, understanding what he wanted her to do. She aimed her key high in the sky, awaiting his count.

He took a small breath, his cheeks puffing out slightly. "One... Two... Three!"

They launched their magic in the air, the small spheres shooting high into the sky and exploding upon contact with the stars, creating a loud, but beautiful showering noise.

* * *

Levy blinked as the sudden fireworks exploded in the night, filling the sky with color. Red, gold... Natsu and Lu-chan?

She quickly stood up, and said excitedly to Gajeel "Let's do that too!"

Gajeel stared at his hand and muttered "I don't think I can..."

"What? Why?"

"My magic." He said simply. "It makes metal. I can't just shoot metal into the sky."

Levy shuddered at the thought of a giant, metal cannonball hurtling towards innocent citizens. "M-maybe you're right..." She looked at Gajeel, and her heart twisted at the sight of him looking so longingly into the sky.

Like a dragon who wanted wings.

She quickly brainstormed, and came up with a solution. "I know!" She summoned the word 'Gray Fireworks' onto her fingers. "I'll just make them, and pretend that you did!" She summoned the words 'Green Fireworks' onto her other hand, and fired them into the sky at the same time. The exploded in brilliant color, and sizzled into the night. Red and gold fireworks popped again in response.

"Looks pretty legit." He muttered gruffly as the gray one burst. And indeed, it did. The shimmering looked as if the fireworks were made of metal. Though the Iron Dragon Slayer would never admit it, Levy could tell he was pleased.

"Okay then! I'll make a bunch! Just sit there and watch." She then shot off another round of fireworks, larger and more magnificent than the previous.

* * *

"Fireworks...?" Erza muttered as the brilliant blooms burst in the night sky.

"They're very pretty." Jellal commented beside her.

She smiled. "Indeed." She requiped into her 'Farewell Fairy Tail' armor, reminded by the old times. Her magic couldn't shoot fireworks, but this should contribute. She tilted her spear to reflect the light from the fireworks and shoot their beams into the sky, knowing her friends will see it.

Jellal prepared his magic to shoot off a firework of his own, but hesitated.

Erza caught him and smiled. "Why do you wait?"

"I'm not a part of this guild... I don't deserve to celebrate... I don't deserve your kindness..." He muttered sadly.

"Nonsense." Erza's sharp voice cut him off from his depressed yammerings. "You are alive Jellal. You are alive and living. You have friends. That is all that matters." She pointed at the sky. "Now shoot, Jellal! Show your magic!"

Smiling, he did as she ordered, and fired a large one into the night. He was surprised when it was not gold, the color of his Heavenly Body magic, but white.

_How ironic..._ He thought to himself. _My life has been very, very dark, yet my magic is pure._

He looked up at the sky, and watched as his firework sizzled away. _How ironic indeed..._

* * *

Citizens watched in awe as fireworks filled the night, every color of the rainbow and more. Those with sharper eyes even saw a blade glinting in the distance. They were never told, yet somehow, they knew that this was Fairy Tail's doing. Red, gold, white, green, purple, 3 different shade of blue, heck, even gray. Never had a night sky been so colorful, so full of life.

Fairy Tail was back.

* * *

"Are we ready?" Erza turned to look at the people behind her. Shouts of agreement returned to her, and she smiled. "Good."

They were ready to head out. This year, Erza will lead, along with, surprisingly, Laxus. She was to play the role of a queen and he was to be king. Though it was strange when it was first suggested, everyone agreed that such roles suited them.

They were to be followed by Lucy and her spirits, Cana and Macao, Natsu and Gray, (a very strange pair, indeed) the Strauss's, Alzack and Bisca, Laki, Gajeel, and then Wendy. The line of floats was pathetically short this year, but they were still short on members. Unfortunately, Juvia was forced to be unable to participate, as a giant rain cloud threatened the town. Had it not been so large, the poor Water mage would've been able to perform _and_ keep the rain in check, but it was taking all she had to contain it.

The music started and Titania yelled "That is our cue! Stay calm, keep your head held high, and give the citizens the show of their lives." She requiped into her Heaven's Wheel armor, and raised her sword. "Onward!" She yelled.

The mages were greeted by deafening cheers from the crowd. Erza's sworsd spun at a blinding speed, and Laxus, who was wearing his usual attire, focused his electricity on the blades, taking advantage of their natural conducter. The result was a spinning golden circle, that many could say looked like the gateway to heaven. Later, Laxus accidentally shot a large lightning bolt straight into the sky, much to Juvia's dismay. She took her revenge on him by letting the rain pour specifically over him for just a few moments before stopping them.

Lucy's float was decorated to look like a ballroom, and she had summoned Leo, Aries, Virgo, Gemini, and Plue to dance with her. They all wore magnificent costumes, and the golden float made it one of the best.

Cana and Macao put on a stunning performance with her cards and his fire. The two bodies seemed to be playing tag, as the cards dashed back and forth and fire chased relentlessly after them. At one point, Macao used Purple Rain to shoot his fire straight up in the sky, and Cana spun her cards at an astonishing speed around the spewing flames, causing them to swirl in the air much like a vortex and shoot out to the sides.

Natsu and Gray's was certainly one to remember. The Ice mage was slowly creating a kind of structure in the middle, while the base of the structure was being licked by Matsu's fire. When the structure was completed, Natsu shot a huge ball of fire into an hollowed out indentation on top, giving it the appearance of a torch.

The Strauss's had a float with a jungle environment. Lisanna was running and flying as a bird all around the float, and Elfman was roaring at the crowd with his full body takeover. Everyone watched in wonder as Mirajane, who was standing on top, transformed in to her Satan Soul: Sitris. Overall, it was a rather terrifying one.

Alzack and Bisca had loaded their guns with confetti, and was firing them in multitudes at the crowd, who cheered for the couple.

Laki stood on her forest-like float, creating strange structures out of wood. Gajeel's was much similar to hers, only he used metal. The crowd quaked at the sight of the Dragon Slayer feasting on iron.

But many could say that Wendy's performance was the most beautiful. The young mage was silk dancing, the petals on her float swirling around her as she manipulated her magic to lift the fragile things. Her hair fluttered at the slight use of magic, the ribbons somehow bending to her will. Best of all, she did it with a smile on her face.

Erza smiled as she saw Jellal, and he smiled back.

However, that smile was soon replaced with horror.

A small crowd of knights had surrounded Jellal, and ws forcefully shoving him through the crowd. Seeing Erza's face, he mouthed something like 'Don't worry about me!' before he was turned around and pulled along.

She wanted to scream his name, run out to save him, but she couldn't. Not in front of all these people. Laxus and a couple other of her guild members looked at her, worried. She flashed them an assuring smile, and focused on the parade. But the crowd's screams were distant to her. This had to end. Fast.

* * *

"Master!" Dressed in her normal clothing, she barged into the master's room at the guild.

"What child?"

"Jellal! They took him away!" Erza was very panicked, something extremely unusual for her.

"Calm down child. I've already been informed."

"You- but- how-" She furiously slammed her hands on the table, breaking it in two, "Why are we just standing here?! What if he's getting arrested?!"

"Take a deep breath, Erza."

_I don't have the time! _She screamed in her mind. But she did as he asked, knowing that Makarov wouldn't speak to her unless she did. She instantly felt calmer. "Master, what do we do?"

"We wait for the trial next week." He looked at the scarlet-haired woman. "He's being sentenced to immediate execution, but he must first be tried. We'll do whatever we can then."

Erza's eyes widened, and she slumped to the floor, hand face buried between his hands. "It's my fault. He might get killed right in front of us in one week and it's all my fault." She sobbed. Makarov walked a over to the crying woman, and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Child, we still have a chance. Do not despair."

She looked at him, her eyes hopeful. "Do we really?" She gasped.

"We do."

She slowly got up, her legs trembling. She wiped the back of her hand against her eyes, and said "Thank you, Master. I feel better now."

Makarov sighed. This just proves that she's still much too young to become Master, although she exceeded the conditions for it. "Don't mention it." He began to leave the room, but stopped at the doorway. "And if all goes well..."

He turned around to face her, and said "He may join our guild."

* * *

**I feel like the parade was rushed. :P Sorry about that. **

**Anddddddd Jellal might join Fairy Tail! :D Still don't know if he actually will, but feel free to hope so.**

**As always, reviews are much appreciated. Thank you for reading! *waves* Bye bye for now! ^.^**


	10. Chapter 9: Teller

**Hello everyone! Back with another chapter. :) **

**First off, I would like to say that chapter 8 has more views than chapter 7, so I'm worried that a few people may have skipped it. (My fault for posting them both at the same time... ^.^") If you're not sure, please look it over!**

**Also, I want to say that Crossfire has over 50 followers! Yay! \^.^/ Thank you all so much! I'll do my best to satisfy you all!**

**And last of all, I want to thank all those people who give me reviews. :) They LITERALLY put a smile on my face. I don't know where I'd be without you guys!**

**And that's all. :) Enjoy chapter 9!**

* * *

That night, the guild celebrated like they had never celebrated the last 7 years. Fantasia was a success! Numerous citizens had dropped by the guild, thanking them for the time of their lives. Some even welcomed them back, to which Fairy Tail's reply was a heartfelt 'thank you.'

"Gray! Natsu! Nice act you put on!" Macao hollered. "That's the first time I seen you within 10 feet each other without starting a fight!"

Gray snorted. "I was tempted. Fire-brain here nearly melted my ice!"

"Tch. Not my fault it's so easy to melt."

The Ice Mage immediately pressed up against him, and snarled "You tryna' say I'm weak?!"

"Maybe I am! Ice-head!"

"Flame-ass!"

"Droopy-eyes!"

"Lover-boy!"

"Emo- Wait, what?" He stepped away in confusion.

"I heard you didn't let go of Lucy the whole time! If that's not love I don't know what is!"

"Oh yeah? I haven't seen you or Juvia at all! Anyone would think you guys were-"

"WE WERE NOT!" Gray roared.

"Juvia kinda wishes we were..." The love-struck Water Mage sighed.

"Dammit." He growled, then stomped away, but not before Natsu noticed his heated face.

Natsu turned to Juvia. "What _were_ you guys doing?"

"Juvia had to go where it was quiet. Juvia could not concentrate with all the noise, so she went to the forest." She put her hands to her blushing cheeks, and squealed "Gray-sama came to check up on Juvia! And brought her whatever she needed... Plus talked with Juvia to keep her from getting bored."

"Oh... That's nice of him." Though Gray had never done anything like that before, it wasn't all that hard to imagine.

Natsu distantly stared around the guild, and noticed out of the corner of his eye a seething mage walk past him. "Dammit Juvia! What the hell was that?!" An angry Laxus stomped up to Juvia, his muscular arms crossed.

Juvia stuck his tongue out at him. "Laxus's lightning made it very hard for Juvia to keep it from raining. So Juvia got mad and made it rain only over Laxus."

He growled. "I can see that! But I looked like a fool!" The surrounding members laughed, for indeed he had looked like a fool. The rain had drenched the Lightning Dragon Slayer, and before realizing it, he had accidentally shocked himself. Never before had they seen the man jump as he did then.

She turned away, pouting. "Not Juvia's problem!"

Lightning crackled around him, threatening to let loose on the Water woman. "I don't like that tone..."

"So? You're not Juvia's father." They roared with laughter, and Laxus leaped at the girl, still spitting lightning. "Get over here!"

"Never! Not until Gray kisses Juvia!"

"GRAY! Get your ass over here!"

"Like hell I will!"

They ran around the guild, Laxus on Juvia's tail, and Gray doing his best to stay out of it. Without noticing, they knocked over the barrel of beer Cana was drinking from, rendering it un-consumable. The alcohol pooled on the floor, slowly seeping into the wood.

The woman slammed her hands on the table and stood up, yelling "You bastards! I was drinking that!"

Laxus yelled "Get another one!" and the same time Juvia screeched "Juvia is sorry!"

The angry mage had only heard Laxus's response. "Shut the hell up!" She pulled out her cards. "You'll pay for this!"

"Is there a fight?! I wanna join!" Natsu yelled gleefully. He lit up his right had, and dashed over, slipping on the puddle of alcohol. It immediately set fire, and the people around him jumped away, screaming.

Levy, who was sitting near the table, shrieked "Natsu! Eat that!"

He quickly did as the girl had asked, only to choke on the flames, for the drink had given the fire an extremely unpleasant taste.

The fire spread, and Laxus's lightning only made it worse. "Juvia will help!" Jumping out of Laxus's reach, she swiped her right and over her left, and yelled "Double Wave!"

Unfortunately, the Water Mage had put in more magic power than she meant to, and the two waves flooded the entire guild upon contact, sweeping away both the fire and it's inhabitants.

"Juvia! Stop it!" Nearby members wailed.

"Juvia is sorry!" She moaned as she flailed in her magic.

Laxus quickly stopped his lightning, realizing the situation the guild was in, but not before they all got electrocuted. They screamed in response, and Laxus yelled "My bad!"

"Dammit..." Gray slammed his palms together and yelled "Freeze!"

"GAH! Shit Gray, that's cold!" The members were now frozen in his ice, some partially and some completely.

"FIRE DRAGON'S ROAR!"

The water quickly melted then boiled, and various people screamed "IT'S HOT NATSU!"

"Sorry!"

* * *

"Jellal... join Fairy Tail?"

Makarov nodded. "Yes, child. Of course he still has to agree, but I believe he will."

"Oh... goodness..." Erza leaned against the wall, breathless. Jellal? Her Jellal?

Become her guildmate?

"But... what about his guild?" She doubted Jellal would join Fairy Tail if Meredy and Ultear didn't.

"Ah... Crime Sorcier? Well, I suppose they'll have to be tried as well."

She frowned. This just sounded much too easy. "But why would the council set Jellal free? It's much more likely they'll just throw him back in jail."

Makarov closed his eyes. "Well... the thing is, a few years ago they've discovered a mage with an extremely rare magic. Since that mage began aiding the council, things have gotten much simpler."

"What magic is that, Master?"

He opened an eye, and said "A Lost Magic: Teller."

Erza gasped. "But how?! That magic belonged to specifically one tribe hundreds of years ago, and they were wiped out!"

"Teller magic..." He muttered. "Magic that tells the truth." He turned to Erza. "Apparently, a few survived, all women, in which their magic flows strongest. Over time, their blood has thinned, and has not resurfaced until now, in the body of a young woman named Celestia."

"Celestia... 'Heavenly'." She murmured.

He nodded. "She was found in the forest by herself near headquarters, and they took her in. When they realized what her magic was, they offered her a comfortable life in the building in exchange for her services. She agreed, and since then, trials have been much simpler."

"...But how will that help us?"

"You're aware that his guild had taken down various Dark Guilds right?" Erza nodded. "This may help prove that Jellal has truly turned."

"Ah... I see..." The two stood in silence, and soon became aware of all the ruckus they were hearing outside the room.

Erza glanced at the door. "Shall I go see what is happening?"

"Be my guest."

The red-head stomped over to the door, and flung it open. She screamed "Silence! You- KYAAA!" Water quickly rushed in, sweeping up the master and Erza in its torrents.

"OW!" Makarov hollered, as lightning shocked his small body. He glanced over at Erza, who's long red hair stood on end.

Before he managed to regain his senses, the water froze, leaving only his head above its surface, to which his response was "COLDCOLDCOLDCOLDCOLD!"

That ice quickly melted, much to his relief. But the temperature shot up, and he screamed "HOTHOTHOTHOTHOT!"

The master roared, then super-sized, and punched a large hole in the wall, forcing the water to flow out of the guild and behind them.

He sighed, and muttered "This guild will be the death of me" and shrunk down to his normal size. He glanced at Erza, and broke into a sweat. Never before had the woman looked so murderous. He caught a glimpse of her eyes, dark and angry, before she stomped out of the room, leaving cracks in the floor in her wake.

* * *

_"Did you have fun? Lucy?"_

_She smiled at Natsu, who seemed a little bit nervous, and said "Yes! A lot!"_

_He flashed her a grin. "That's great!" He squeezed her hand one last time, and walked away._

_"Oh, you're not staying?" She called after him._

_"Nah, not tonight." He said over his shoulder. "I'm kinda in the mood to sleep at my place."_

_"Oh, alright. See you tomorrow, then?"_

_"Yup!"_

"That's what he said but..." Lucy stared incredulously at the half-dead form in front of her. "Why is he here?!"

He croaked some inaudible words, and Lucy sighed. Grabbing him by the scarf, she heaved him into the apartment and leaned him against the sofa. "What the heck happened?" Natsu was covered in bruises, and there was a huge knot on his head.

"E-Erza..."

"Ah... I see." She contemplated asking what exactly what happened, but remembering that this was Natsu and she would only get excited gibberish, she decided she would ask Levy later.

Lucy got up and said "I'll get some ice for that."

Natsu watched as she rummaged through her freezer, and gave a pained smile as her eyes lit up upon finding what she was looking for. "That's not gonna last long..." He coughed.

"Well, make it last as long as possible. I don't have all that much." She set the bag of ice on his head, and he yelped.

"It's cold!" He unconsciously rose his body heat, and the ice melted immediately, plopping to the floor in front of him as a bag of liquid.

"Natsu!" She cried.

"Sorry." He muttered. "But it's too cold."

She groaned. "It's supposed to be, dammit! It relieves pain and keeps the swelling down!"

He frowned. "Can you say that in English?"

She threw up her hands in the air, and screeched "You are freaking hopeless!"

He grinned at her. "Which is why you love me right?"

That felt strange, coming out of his mouth. He hoped she wouldn't get mad.

"Ugh!" She merely yelled. He then watched nervously as her face went from frustrated to horror, to confusion, and just plain red.

They sat in awkward silence, both trying to register what came out of Natsu's mouth.

_He said 'love'. He just said 'love'! But he was joking right? I don't love him! Well, sure I do but... not like that! I think..._

_Aw, crap. Is she gonna kill me? Really hope not. I don't know how much more female abuse I can take. But why did I say that? So weird... _He cocked his head. _Will she say yes? _

_I feel really weird. _

And then she did something that would've never even crossed his mind- she stomped her foot.

Lucy watched as Natsu's shoulders shook. He was laughing! This was no laughing matter!

"What's so funny?!" She demanded, unconsciously stomping her foot yet again.

"It's just... you just..." He turned away, laughing. "Luce, you stomped your foot! Who does that?"

"Sh-shut up!" She said, embarrassed. Sudden realization hit her. "Did you just call me 'Luce'?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I guess so." He turned to face her. "What, you don't like it?"

"Well... no, but..." She wouldn't admit it, but she liked it very much. It made her feel special. And warm.

"Alright then." He slowly stood up, legs shaking. He then suddenly collapsed on the sofa behind him, unable to stand any longer. "So... Where am I sleeping?"

"What?! I thought you were going to sleep at your house!"

"Too tired to move." He said groaning.

She sighed. "Well, sleep on the sofa then."

"Okay." Natsu turned over, facing the back of the sofa. "G'night Luce."

She walked out of the room, and whispered "Good night." The stupid Dragon Slayer was already asleep.

Lucy flopped onto her bed, exhausted from the day's work. "Good thing I didn't go to the guild..." She murmured to the ceiling. "Otherwise, I might have come home looking like that."

She crawled up, and rested her head on the pillow. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the stuffed Plue that Natsu had won her, and pulled it close, hugging it to her chest tightly. "I wonder why he asked where to sleep..." She said as she pulled up her comforter. Normally, Natsu just goes to her bed without asking and sleeps there. And more often than not, before she even got home herself.

She smiled at how she would always get riled up when she saw him there. _Actually... _She thought as she snuggled into her blanket's warmth. _I wouldn't be all that surprised if I see him right next to me tomorrow morning._

She was aware of the sleep that was overtaking her, and turned herself so she was facing the window. The stars were still shining brightly, even though they were so far apart and surrounded by total darkness. She slowly brought her hand up to her face, the hand that fit so perfectly in Natsu's that night, and clenched it.

_Why am I thinking about him so much...?_

_...Do I love him, Mama?_

* * *

"The Day of the Closing is coming soon, Leo. You must warn your owner as soon as possible."

Leo bowed his head before the Great Spirit King, and said "I will, Father."

The king grumbled in response. "Very well. You are dismissed."

Leo turned and walked away, but before leaving he heard the king say "Lucy Heartfilia is a very kind being. The day she falls is a day we despair. You must empathize the dangers for her own safety, Old Friend."

"I will." He repeated solemnly.

* * *

Makarov scanned the guild over in dismay. The place was a wreak! Bottles and barrels scattered the floor, windows were shattered, and furniture was either upturned, broken, or both. Finding a table that hadn't been broken into splinters was a challenge, and various char marks scored the walls. The floor was damp, and gave off a strange smell. Overall, repairing was gonna take a huge chunk out of whatever they earned from Fantasia.

He sighed, and screamed at the empty building "Why can't you brats just let me retire?!"

* * *

The next morning, Lucy was greeted by the sun, which shined warmly in her face.

She got up and stretched, feeling fully rejuvenated from yesterday's work. Bones she never knew she had cracked in response.

She looked beside her, surprised to see that it was Dragon Slayer-free. He hadn't come up last night after all.

She walked to the living room, and peered through the doorway. Natsu was snoring away on the sofa, looking as if he hadn't a care in the world. Typical.

Lucy got ready for the day, taking a bath, got dressed, and began making breakfast. As she was frying eggs, she heard footsteps behind her, and a bleary "Good morning Lucy."

"Oh! Good morning Natsu." She turned back to the eggs, not wanting them to burn. "Hungry?"

"Mm? Yeah, kind of... Can you make something really spicy?"

"Sure. Just clean yourself up a little and wait in the dining room."

"Okay..." He lumbered to the bathroom, and Lucy took out her special reserve of peppers from the fridge. Knowing that whatever she made wouldn't be too hot for him, she emptied the whole bag into a bowl and rinsed them in the sink, tending to the eggs every now and then.

Pretty soon, the kitchen smelled of food. Natsu grinned as Lucy walked into the dining room holding plates of food.

"Here." She handed him plate with a large omelette in it, folded over so he couldn't see what was inside. She sat down across from him, and began eating.

Natsu took a huge chunk of the omelette and stuffed it into his mouth, sighing in contentment as he chewed on it. The omelette was stuffed with peppers, and the omelette itself tasted sweet. His favorite combination.

"You like it?"

"It taste pretty good." He mumbled through a full mouth.

Lucy cringed slightly, but didn't say anything, smiling instead. "Great!"

After the two had eaten, they walked over to the guild, where they were enthusiastically greeted by their friends.

Natsu walked over to the bar, and began yelling to Mira, no doubt asking for more food. Lucy sat down next to Levy, who smiled cheerfully in response. "Hi Lu-chan!"

"Good morning Levy!" She looked at the stack of papers in from of her, the carvings Lucy had found a couple days ago, and asked "Are you translating them right now?"

She nodded. "Yup! But when Wendy comes back, I'm going to ask her about it. I had already asked Gajeel, and he said they look familiar, but had no idea what they mean." She grinned mischieviously at Lucy. "So how was last night?"

"I-it was fun."

"...Did he do anything?"

"He kind of... held my hand..."

Levy clapped her hands together, squealing "Aw! That's so cute!"

"I guess... Hey, what happened last night? Natsu showed up at my doorstep looking like he went to Hell and back."

Levy shuddered. "Um... That's a long story..." She slipped her sleeve a little below her arm, and Lucy grimaced at the bruise. "No one made it unscathed."

"I got all the time in the world Levy. Besides, you look like you could use a break."

"I guess I do. But I'm not repeating the whole thing. I'll get nightmares" She admitted. She turned so her body was completely facing Lucy's. "So like, after Fantasia we had an after-party. A bunch of stuff happened, and Juvia ended up flooding the guild, Laxus electrocuted us, Gray froze us, Natsu burned us, and Erza pummeled us. _All_ of us. I think Laxus got the worst of it though- Erza threw him straight through the ceiling! We still haven't seen him since then." She looked at Lucy's shocked face, and added "You are seriously lucky you weren't there Lu-chan."

"I-I can tell..."

Levy's head snapped up as a familiar young girl walked into the guild. "Oh! Wendy!"

Wendy approached them and sat at their table. "Hello Levy-san! Lucy-san!"

"Hello Wendy!" The two chorused back at her.

She glanced at the stack of papers, her eyebrows furrowed. "What's that?"

"It's a bunch of carvings that Lu-chan found a few days ago. I think it might be related to the missing dragons. Can you look at them?"

"Sure!" The blue-haired girl scooted in next to Levy, and peered at the papers. "This is... Dragon Runes."

"Dragon Runes?"

She nodded. "The dragons' way of writing. Grandeeney taught me a few letters, but I don't remember all of them."

"Please tell me all you know! Even a single letter will help a lot in the translation!" Levy pleaded.

"Okay!"

Lucy listened as Wendy pointed out various markings on the page, and sounding out their meaning. It seemed _really_ complicated. A few minutes later, Wendy left, Levy vigorously thanking her.

"How long do you think before you translate it all?" Lucy asked Levy.

"Thanks to Wendy, only a week!"

"So soon?!"

She nodded gleefully. "But I'll go work on this back at the dorm. It's way more quiet."

"That's understandable. Do you need help carrying any- wait, never mind." She quickly stopped her sentence, as Gajeel had already grabbed most of the stack from Levy and began nudging her out of the guild.

_Ugh... The week is going to be so slow..._

"Hey! Lucy!" She blinked as Natsu slammed a paper on the table in front of her. "Let's go on a mission!"

"'Guard carriage from monsters and thieves for one week. Reward: 450,000 jewels.'" She read. "Perfect!" This should kill time nicely. And help pay her rent.

"Yes! Let's go right away!" He proceeded to dragging Lucy out of the guild, hollering over his shoulder "MIRA! We're taking this one!" He glanced at his blue-furred friend, and grinned. "Let's go, Happy!"

"Aye, sir!"

"Have fun you three!" Mira called out behind them.

"We will!" They called back to her.

_Haha, __they really are cute together. _Mira thought warmly.

* * *

**Lots of stuff is happening next week! (In the story) The trial and the translation and such. **

**Dundundun... The Day of the Closing! You guys will find out more about that later. :)**

**I'm not sure what to do about the Grand Magic Games. Either I say it had already happened, it never will happened, or it didn't happen yet. Still thinking on that.**

**And the Teller magic. It kinda sounds stupid, but it was all I could think of at the moment. ^.^" Heh heh... **

**ANYWAY, thanks for reading! As always, reviews are greatly appreciated. *waves* Hope to see you soon!**


	11. Chapter 10: Future Sight

**Hello everybody :) I'm back! :D Sorry for the late update (well, later than I usually do) but I was a occupied with a drawing. As much as I love fanfiction, my drawings will always come first. ;) (The drawing I was working on is in no way related to my fanfiction, but if you're curious the link is on my profile. It should be up soon.) Also, I was kinda having trouble with this chapter. I hope it meets your expectations.**

**So... the trial! I don't really know how the real trial works, so I'm just gonna make a bunch of stuff up... Hope that's okay with y'all. There will be an OC in here. A few actually, and you _will_ see them again later. So remember 'em. Hope you like! (And after I make my doujinshi of this, you'll see how they look like. :))**

**Also, I'm thinking of rewriting the first few chapters. Compared to the ones I have now, they are _devastatingly_ short. =.= I mean, come on. Lately I've been writing 3,000 to 6,000 word chapters but chapter 2 is like, 900 words. =.=**

**And another quick thank you to my constant reviewers. :) You guys are totally the best! :D**

**Not much else to say so... Enjoy chapter 10!**

* * *

Lucy hummed as they rode the train back to Magnolia. The mission had went by smoothly, ending with a very grateful client who paid an extra 50,000 jewels.

"How... can you be... so happy...? " Natsu groaned. "I'm... dying... Urp!"

She sighed. As always, transportation made him next to useless. "Sit next to me then." She scooted closer to the window and patted the seat next to her.

He eyed her warily. "You're... not gonna... knock me out... are you?..."

Lucy huffed in response. "Who do you think I am, Erza?"

Natsu slowly got up and did as she asked, and rested his head on her lap. "You smell nice." He muttered.

Lucy's face flushed in response, and she bopped him on the head. "Don't say stuff like that!"

Across from them, Happy looked at them with a troll face, and giggled "He _liiiiiiikes _you."

"Shut up cat!" She growled, still aware of her heated cheeks.

The three of them rode the train all the way back to Magnolia, Lucy glaring at the cat the whole time and Natsu calmly resting in her lap. Lucy had done wonders for him. Though she didn't provide as much relief as Troia did, at most, Natsu could only say he was uncomfortable.

The second the train stopped, Natsu shot up and sped of the train, screaming 'I'm hooooooooome!'

"We're not even at the guild yet!" Lucy shouted after him. "And I don't even get a 'thank you'..." She muttered angrily before stomping after him.

"You liiiiiiiiiiike him."

Lucy glared at him again. "Shut up cat!"

"You're going to get wrinkles like an old lady, making that face all the-"

Lucy screeched, and immediately picked up the cat by his cheeks, pulling the blue masses apart and turning his annoying words into incomprehensible mumbling. "You stay quiet until we get to the guild, or I get Virgo to bury you!"

"Give me fish."

Disgusted, Lucy dropped him into the ground where he landed on two of his paws. "Ugh, fine. Later."

* * *

A middle-aged man walked into the large room, welcomed by the sight of a child playing by herself on the floor. He sighed. She was so carefree... But going through so much...

"Celestia... Are you aware that there is an important trial today?"

The young girl looked up, previously occupied by the new toy Doranbolt had given her. "Yeah! But I'm bored!"

The butler sighed. "Well, I suppose if you are prepared for it, there is no need for concern." He walked over to her and kneeled, holding out his hand. "I'm here to inspect your bracelet. Please show me."

The girl pouted, but did as he asked. The silver bracelet's light flashed in response, signaling it was undamaged. He nodded, and released her. "Thank you, Celestia. I will come back for you in an hour. And..." He let his voice trail to a mere whisper, and leaned down. "How are you... feeling?"

Many would say he was being ridiculously vague, but the little Teller Mage understood. "I'm seeing a lot of things... I don't know if they already happened or if they're supposed to happen later on... If they ever will happen..." She looked up at him, her eyes wide with fear, her lip quivering. "I'm scared Mearann. I see scary things and I don't know what to do!"

She sobbed, and jumped into his lap. The butler stroked her hair, on the verge of crying himself. She was an unbelievably sweet girl. For her to go through something like this so young... It was cruel.

At this point, he was extremely concerned. Lately, Celestia had gone through strange spells of... madness. What else could he call them?

Her eyes would go blank, and she would start yammering all this gibberish nonsense. At first, her words came out excited, but they slowly turned fearful, and she would pass out, waking up with memory of it.

But she knew when they happened. She would wake up in cold sweat, her butler cradling her in his arms with tears streaming down his face. This scared her to no end, which was understandable. A five year-old girl, seeing terrifying things repeatedly, and waking up not remembering what it was but knowing that it scared her.

Luckily, such spells had only occurred when he was alone with her, but it was only a matter of time before someone else finds out. He wouldn't even be surprised if the council knew already, and was just keeping quiet.

But she always recovered from them quickly, turning back to her usual, sweet, mischievous self in almost no time at all, another thing the butler was grateful for.

"It'll be okay Cels." He said comfortingly, using the nickname he was forbidden from using by the council. After all, one with powers such as her shouldn't be treated in that manner by a mere butler. It would be seen as disrespectful.

But she needed this right now. And though she may have powerful magic, she was still a child. A child in need of comfort.

His heart nearly broke in two when she looked up again, her tears drying up but her voice still shaky. "Really?"

"Of course!" He let go off her, and wiped the salty fluid off her cheeks. "Why don't you play with your toy until I come back? I bet it will make Doranbolt happy."

She gave a huge grin, and said "Okay Mearann!" She immediately turned back to the toy and picked it up with both hands, waving it around happily.

The butler smiled sadly as he saw the girl playing, then left, softly closing the door behind him.

_She needs help._ He thought grimly.

* * *

"Lucy!" The said mage jumped at Erza's commanding tone, then began to freak out as the scarlet-haired woman began stomping over to her.

"H-hi Erza..." She felt her eyes grow wider. No way she could be mad at her seconds upon return!

"I'm so glad you made it!" Lucy let out a strangled cry as her head slammed into her armor. _Hard_... "I was afraid you two wouldn't come in time!"

Lucy pulled away from her friend's painful embrace. '_Us two...?' _She glanced over to see Natsu with a bump in his forehead, most likely similar to hers.

She turned back to Erza, who was smiling nervously. "What is it that we're in time for?"

"You fool!" Lucy cried out as Erza angrily slapped her on the head. "I explained the situation to the entire guild last week! Were you not listening?!"

"Erza, they had already left for their mission when you adressed us." Mirajane brightly chirped from behind the bar.

"Oh... I see..." She turned her head away in shame, and choked out "Forgive me, I jumped to conclusions. Please hit me!"

Lucy put her hands in the air, trying to reassure her friend. "I-it's okay Erza-"

Erza suddenly took a step back and cut her off, saying "Never mind. You may hit me later. But we have more important matters to attend to at the moment."

Lucy sweat dropped. "Oh... okay?"

Erza looked at her strangely. "Do not sound so disappointed. You already have my word."

Her jaw hit the floor. "I'm not-"

Lucy had a sudden urge to slam her head into the table when Erza immediately started explaining. "In an hour, the Council will hold a trial to decide Jellal's innocence." Her eyes lit up. "If he is found innocent, he could join Fairy Tail!"

"Really?! That's amazing!" Lucy smiled, knowing that Erza had feelings for the blue-haired mage (though she didn't realize it herself), and that him joining the guild would make her very happy.

But she couldn't help but be nervous. "And what will happen if... he is found guilty?"

Erza's eyes hardened. "He will be executed on the spot."

The two stood in awkward silence, neither meeting the other's gaze.

"Th-that is nothing to worry about!" Erza declared, her voice only slightly wavering. "We have much evidence to prove his innocence, and a Teller Mage to verify them."

"Teller Mage?" Lucy was sure she heard that somewhere before, but couldn't put her finger on it.

"A mage that tells the truth." Erza said impatiently. She gave Lucy a stern look, warning her not to interrupt again. The blonde pressed her lips together, understanding. "During the Tower of Heaven, he was being manipulated by Zeref. That will be evidence that proves his actions were not willing. Also," She gestured towards the back room. "Blue Pegasus is helping us as well. Hibiki's Archive magic was a great asset to us in searching up the names of the Dark Guilds Crime Sorciere eliminated the past couple years. The number of them is astonishing." She added. "And the Teller Mage will verify all of our evidence. As long as we have no false information, we have a very good chance of succeeding."

Lucy wanted to know more about this Teller Mage, but she knew better than to ask now. It just wasn't a good time. "What about Meredy and Ultear?"

"If the time comes to it, they will be tried as well."

"Wow... So that's in an hour?"

She nodded. "There's nothing left to do but wait."

"Ah... I see..." Lucy suddenly clapped her hands together, remember something else she was looking forward to this week. "Erza! Have you seen Levy?! I _really_ need to talk to her."

"She's at the dorm. She said she will meet us at the court in an hour." She glanced at the clock. "Well, more like half now." She turned around, and shouted to Makarov "Master! Shall we get going?"

He nodded, then shouted to the guild "Alright brats! We better get movin'!"

The guild cheered in response, and those who were going got up, and gathered near the master. They consisted mainly of the members whom Ultear aided in getting their second origin.

"I'm fired up!" Natsu shouted ecstatically.

"Tch. It's just a trial." Gray shot back.

"I hope you're not fighting." Erza said menacingly.

The two immediately went under each others arms, and Gray squeaked "N-no Erza, we're the best of friends!"

"Aye!"

"That's good." Erza said, nodding in approval. "Friends do fight every now and then, but I'd much rather see you two get along." She turned away from them, and the two shot death-glares at each other.

"Natsu!" Makarov boomed. "Destroy _anything_, and you will answer to me!"

"A-aye..."

"Okay children! To headquarters!"

"YEAH!"

* * *

"Jellal Fernandez."

Jellal looked up, and saw a man peering down at him, and disgusted look in his face. "It is time for your trial." He said coldly. "We will now remove you from the prison. I have orders to electrocute you if you try to resist."

He merely bowed his head in response, and the man tsked and looked away.

Jellal made no move as they led him to the courtroom, and seated him at a table, metal bracelets still on his wrists. "Your supporting party will arrive soon. You may speak to them."

"Understood." He replied quietly.

_Fairy Tail must want to help me_. Jellal thought._ I hope they don't get in trouble..._

Jellal sat quietly as he waited for them to show up. One by one, jury members filed into the room. The council members sat at the highest seats, and the judge glared at him from the top. He was not expecting, however, a a young child to come in. She wore a dark, purple dress and a short black cloak with a hood, though it was currently down, revealing her face. She had long, wavy brown hair that reached the back of her knees, large amber eyes, and was holding a doll of some sort. She looked at him curiously, and he smiled back. His expression soon turned to horror as he spied a metal bracelet like his own in her tiny wrist.

_She is only a child..._ He seethed. _Why on Earthland would she need that?_

"Jellal!" Jellal turned around to see a familiar, red-haired mage running towards him, accompanied by what seemed to be the whole guild.

His jaw dropped. "E-Erza?..."

She smiled warmly. "Yes. Fairy Tail is on your side."

Jellal shook his head. "But if I lose this trial, you'll all get in trouble."

"Don't talk like that Jellal!" Natsu retorted loudly. "We're getting you out of here, one way or another!" At the last comment, the expressions of the Fairy Tail mages turned horrified, and the council members and jury cast them suspicious glances.

Erza quickly slammed Natsu's head into the table, and a large crack ran through the dark wood, promptly knocking him out. "Silence! You fool!" She hissed, not caring that he didn't hear her.

"Stupid fire-freak..." Gray muttered. Lucy merely gaped at the Dragon Slayer, frozen in place.

The Requip Mage then turned back to Jellal, and whispered "He's right, you know. Should you lose- and you will not!- we are in trouble anyway. We may as well take you with us."

"But-"

"Sssh." She put an armored finger to his lip, shocking him. "You _will_ live."

She removed her finger, and Jellal turned away blushing. Her finger was cold, but he had never felt so hot in his life.

Erza then turned to Makarov, who was staring intently at a young girl. "Master, has this Teller Mage arrived yet? Is she anywhere in the room? I would like to meet her."

Makarov pointed at the child, and Erza's eyes widened. "Her?! But she can't be a day over seven!" She distinctly remembered her master describing her as a 'young woman'.

"I'm surprised as well. But why else would a child such as she be in the court?"

_I was told she was young... but not a woman. _He thought silently to himself. _I had only assumed that because of their frequent, on-the-spot executions... Would they really let a child sit back and watch that? _He looked up at the ceiling, a wistful expression on his withered face_. How the council has sunk these past few years..._

"She has an electrocution bracelet on." Jellal said bitterly.

"WHAT?!" The two roared. Dammit, they really _have_ sunk!

"How cruel..." Erza's eyes were fogged with anger, and she glared at the council members.

Makarov scowled fiercely at the figures high above them. "What is the meaning of this?! Council?!"

"We know she can tell truths, but she is just as capable of telling lies." A low voice rumbled. "If she lies, the bracelet will give her a small shock- just enough to force a reaction from her that we will notice. Please do not fret, she would not be harmed." The man then gave Celestia a faint smile, who was oblivious to their conversation. "So far, the child has proved trustworthy. One day, when we feel she deserves the respect and courtesy, we will remove the bracelet."

The two mages relaxed, though they were far from happy.

"Lu-chan!"

Lucy smiled as Levy ran up to them, breathless and slightly sweaty. "Hi Levy!"

The script mage leaned in close, and said excitedly "I finished Lu-chan! I've translated everything!"

"That's great!" Lucy clapped her hands. "Show me after, okay?"

Levy nodded, and the two seated themselves among their guild members.

_Oh... Is that her? _She thought as she spotted Celestia, playing with her doll. _But she's so young!_ She wriggled into her seat to get more comfortable, interlacing her fingers.

_Nope, doesn't feel the same._ Lucy thought, pulling apart her hands and resting them on her lap, referring to the one night she had done that with Natsu.

She blinked. Where did that come from? Turning her attention back to the Teller Mage, she thought_ I should go talk to her after... _She didn't know why, but she felt like she _had_ to talk with her. Like if she did, she would tell her something important.

The feeling unsettled her, and she hoped speaking to the little girl would erase them.

"Are we all here?" A loud voice boomed from the highest seat. When no one replied, he slammed his gavel onto the table and shouted "Then let the trial commence!"

"There's a lot of people here for him." Celestia commented to Mearann.

The butler smiled in response. "Indeed. So what do you make of him?"

"...I think he looks nice. He'd have to be, or not so many people would come to help him." She paused, then added "And he was worried me." She remembered him looking at the bracelet in anger, and the venom in his voice as he told the others.

She secretly hoped he would win. He really did seem like a good person.

He then turned to a woman below him, and asked "Please state the charges."

She cleared her throat, and stood up, holding a paper in her gloved hands. "Jellal Fernandez is accused of the following: Treason, Conspiracy, Aiding and Abetting, Disturbing the Peace, and Murder." Jellal flinched. Boy, did he make a mess of himself.

"He was being controlled by Zeref!" Erza shouted, standing up. Her guild members looked at her, surprised by her sudden outburst. It wasn't like her.

"Silence!" He slammed his gavel onto the table, and yelled "I sentence him to execution!"

"WHAT?!"

Celestia blinked. "Already?"

A person near him quickly leaned over, and whispered something in his ear. The judge scowled in response, and said through clenched teeth "According to the law, both sides must first give their statements before the defendant is sentenced."

"Damn straight..." Gray muttered.

The judge gave a heavy sigh, and looked to the group of people against Jellal. "Please do the honor of speaking first."

A man with glasses stood up and began addressing the crowd. "Your Honor and the jury, this man has committed many crimes in his lifetime. Though they were long ago, they will never be forgotten. Jellal Fernandez infiltrated the council, and talked them into firing an extremely dangerous weapon that took innocent lives." There were collective gasps throughout the crowd, and he continued. "And very recently..." He jerked his thumb at Erza, and spat "He seduced this beautiful young woman into hiding him from the council!"

"He did no such thing!" Makarov roared.

"How else would a beauty like her be seen with trash like him?!" The man shot back. Jellal did a face-palm, and mages in Fairy Tail smirked. Erza's face darkened considerably.

"May I ask what's so funny?" The judge asked the guild in a bored tone.

"This guy is obviously jealous of Jellal!" Someone hollered.

"Jellal is 10 times better than you'll ever be!" Lucy hissed furiously, surprising her friends. "Just because you're jealous doesn't give you the right to-"

"I am not jealous!"

Lucy stood up, and screeched "YOU SHUT THE HELL UP AND LISTEN TO ME, YOU LITTLE-"

The judge immediately pounded the table with his gavel, and yelled "Silence! Let them finish."

Natsu flinched at his partner's harsh words. Lucy rarely swore like that, so he had a feeling that she was pretty pissed.

_This guy pisses me off for some reason..._ Lucy angrily thought to herself as she sat back down.

The judge sighed, and said "Continue. And be sure it doesn't reflect your feelings this time."

There were several laughs among the crowd. Even Celestia giggled.

The man gritted his teeth. "I have nothing else to say."

"Good." The judge slammed his gavel once more and shouted "Jellal Fernandez is hereby sentenced to execution!"

"WHAT?!"

A vein popped on Erza's forehead as she watched the scenario repeat itself again. This man did not know how to do his job, and people like that were a simply a waste of time.

"Very well. Fairy Tail, present your evidence to prove his innocence."

Erza stood up, and began speaking. "Your Honor and the jury, Jellal was not himself at the time he infiltrated the council. He was forcibly being controlled by Zeref, the most evil mage to walk upon this land."

Celestia cocked her head. Zeref? It sounded awful familiar to her. She didn't like the sound of it, the way the name lingered in her mind before slipping away. It felt... scary.

"Then why is he still alive?" A random voice shouted from the crowd.

"We do not know." She admitted. "But some of our members have seen him directly, so we know for sure he still lives." There were several more gasps, as they tried to register the new information. The thought of _him_ still alive frightened them terribly.

The judge leaned back, and muttered loudly "Well, that's new." He turned to Celestia, who was quietly observing the whole time. "Celestia! Verify that, would you?"

She turned to her butler. "What does verify mean again?" She asked in her small, childish voice.

She inwardly grinned. Of course she knew what it meant, but messing with people was, oh, so fun.

The judge did a face-palm, and Mearann hurriedly explained. She nodded, and said "Ver-ey-fy what?" purposely dragging out the word.

Next to her, Mearann smiled. He was used to her little pranks, and always found them amusing.

The judge sighed heavily. "Everything on behalf of Fairy Tail. Especially the Zeref part."

She blinked. "It's the truth Mister. That man," She pointed at Jellal. "Something scary was inside him. It made him do things he didn't want to. And that guy, with the funny hair-" she pointed to Natsu, who protested 'Hey!' (He had woken up some time ago.) "He saw the scary thing. But he looks like a person." She cocked her head confusedly as she peered further into his thoughts. She thought he would look... scarier, but he wasn't at all, though his name still gave her goosebumps. "The person looks sad though."

"TMI girly." He turned back to Erza. "Anything else?"

"The charges. Treason, Conspiracy, Disturbing the Peace, and Murder... those were all the fault of Zeref."

"Celestia?"

"They're not lying." She said absentmindedly.

"As for Aiding and Abetting... I assume you are refering to last night?" The woman whom stated the charges nodded. "I asked Jellal to the festival of my own free will. We were neither Aiding nor Abetting... we just wanted to enjoy each other's company."

A few sighs came from the crowd, directed toward the young, bright-haired couple, and the judge asked "Celestia?"

"They're not lying." She chirped.

"They're sure an honest bunch." Lahar commented to Doranbolt.

"That they are." He replied absently, his gaze fixed on Wendy. _She looks the same as she did 7 years ago_. He thought to himself smiling.

"All right." He glanced back at Erza. "I suppose you aren't finished yet?"

She shook her head. "Also, Jellal has helped us many times." She looked straight up at the council, and said with conviction "You as well."

"Us?" Gran Doma grumbled. "Explain child."

"Are you not aware of the missing Dark Guilds?" She gestured towards Jellal. "That was his doing, along with two other mages."

"Please name the guilds." The judge said. "Celestia, pay close attention and tell us if they're lying immediately."

She nodded, and Erza started listing the names. "Ebony Wolf. Stone Wall. Night Crow. Black Fauna..." She continued, and various gasps rose from the crowd as she stated the names, for many of those Dark Guilds were known to be quite formidable.

Also, the sheer number of it amazed them. For three mages to take on a whole guild, much less dozens, was highly unlikely. They repeatedly glanced at Celestia, who listened intently, but never made so much as a peep.

"...and Spirit Hunter." She finished. "That is all we know of."

"That's all of them." Jellal commented. Erza nodded in response.

"...Celestia?"

"Wow! So many!" She gasped, her eyes wide and glittering in awe. She may not know much, but she knew that you had to be _very_ strong to defeat so many guilds.

"Are they lying or not?!" The judge snapped.

She shook her head. "They're not."

The judge shook his head in disbelief, but seeing no shock-induced reactions from the little girl, he took her word for it. "And who are those other two mages?"

"Meredy and Ultear Milkovich, ex-members of Grimoire Heart."

"Conspiracy!" Someone yelled.

"The three did not commit any crimes as a group- other than breaking Jellal out of jail- therefore, there was no 'Conspiracy'" She look back at the Council members, who seemed almost dazed. "This was of help to you, wasn't it? Jellal has spent the last few years trying to atone for his sins. He is innocent!"

"...Girl?"

"They're telling the truth." Celestia said.

Various murmurs ran throughout the crowd, and there were, in fact, some positive comments.

"And, he helped us eliminate Oracion Seis, a rather large threat to you at the time. Without Jellal, there was a very good chance that we wouldn't have succeeded."

"Indeed, you have done a good job in dealing with them." One of the council members commented. "Though Fairy Tail tends to cause a lot of trouble, they are a kind, honest, and reliable group. If you say you could not have done it without this young man's help, then that it good enough for me. I vote him innocent!"

The guild brightened up at the comment, and looked around anxiously for more votes.

"He has been of help to us." Gran Doma agreed. "But he has still broken the law, and has not payed the price for it."

Someone from Fairy Tail shouted "His sentence was life-long imprisonment!" but the council member ignored it and continued.

"I vote another 10 years of prison before release." He finished.

Jellal reared back. Those years in prison were awful. Watching, waiting, for nothing. Can he really stand another 10?

"He deceived us all!" Someone shouted. "I could never forgive him for that! I vote execution!"

"No!" Erza cried. And, much to her dismay, a few more people voiced their agreement. The votes were now 4 to 1 against Jellal, including Gran Doma's.

_6 more members left to vote, but the Master will surely support us._ Erza quickly thought. _Plus the jury... but a unanimous decision only counts as one vote, though I doubt they will reach one._

Sure enough, Makarov voted for Jellal, his voice loud and clear. 4 to 2.

The judge turned to the jury. "Have you reached your verdict?"

"We have not." Someone replied.

"Ah... A hung jury... Your vote shall not count." He looked to the remaining council members, who were deep in thought. "Anyone else?"

"I vote for his innocence. Many of those Dark Guilds listed were a threat to the citizens, and it is a relief to have them off our backs."

"I agree as well. Who can break away from Zeref's control? It is obvious that he was truly a good person."

"He tricked us into firing Etherion!" Someone argued.

"It was not of his own will!" Someone else shouted back.

The Council members shouted back and forth, some for Jellal, some against. A few merely sat quietly, observing the scenario. It was long and tedious, and the mages of Fairy Tail were very nervous. Celestia watched them intently, waiting for their decision. She hoped the blue-haired man wouldn't get hurt though. He seemed nice.

Suddenly, the judge slammed his gavel, and shouted "That is enough! We shall now vote! All who are in favor of release, please raise your hands!"

Four hands answered.

"All those who are in favor of execution?"

Six.

"That's bull!" Gray and Natsu shouted.

"But... he's changed... why?" Wendy whimpered. Though she knew that this was not her Jellal, she still knew that this Jellal was a good person. He saved Natu's life. Lucy squeezed her shoulder comfortingly, but tears were welling up in the blonde mage's eyes.

_What? Why?! _Celestia thought to herself. _Everything they said was true! And so many people care about him! And that woman... _She glanced at Erza, who was trembling, and her eyes downcast. Sadness and anger rolled off her in immense waves, and the sheer force of it caused tears of her own to appear. _Her heart... is breaking..._

The young girl watched in horror as they dragged the man over in front of the council, and forced him to his knees. They then backed away considerably, anticipating the form of his killer.

"I'm sorry... Erza..."

"Jellal!" Erza screamed.

_No one who is loved by so many people can be evil! _She didn't want him to be killed. He didn't deserve it!

On pure instinct, she clasped her hands together and gathered her magic power, focusing it on the people around her.

Erza requipped, and rushed forward, accompanied by Gray and Natsu. The others, not being nearly as fast as them stood up abruptly, preparing to fight. Time seemed to stop as one of the council members raised his hand, ready to give the bracelet the signal to electrocute him to death.

"Erza!"

"NO!' She screamed.

"**Mind Alteration**." Her eyes glowed, and her magic reached its climax as she released. It swelled in the air, casting a golden glow. Erza, sensing that something bad would happen if she did not get back to her original position right away, quickly changed back to her original armor and forcefully yanked Natsu and Gray back to their seats. She hissed at the others to sit back down, and they hesitantly complied.

"Erza?! What the heck is happening?!" Gray asked in a rushed tone.

"Wait, I think the girl is helping us."

Suddenly, the room stopped glowing and Celestia rested her hands in her lap, nodding off from the sudden depletion of magic power. She looked through droopy eyes as the judge blinked, then shouted "Jellal Fernandez is innocent! He is released from all charges against him."

"WHAT?!" Natsu was lost.

"But didn't they just say-"

"Thank you, Your Honor." Erza said, cutting Jellal off.

"Don't mention it." The judge huffed, then turned to Jellal, who was still on his knees, dumbfounded. "But do a favor and get a Dark Guild off their backs every now and then? I'd rather not have to go through this again."

"Er... Right."

Sudden realization hit him as he remembered something. "Wait, what about my guildmates?!"

"Guildmates?"

"Conspiracy!"

"Shut the hell up!"

"The two other mages Erza mentioned. They're the ones who broke me out, and helped me eradicate the Dark Guilds. Is there any chance-"

"Celestia?"

"The truth." She said sleepily.

"Innocent." The judge declared. In all honesty, going through this again simply sounded painful, but no one disagreed.

He sighed in relief. "Thank you."

The judge nodded, and signaled to one of the Council members. The mage nodded in return, and flicked his wrist. Jellal's bracelets fell to the floor with a clatter, and he flexed his wrists, relieved that those damn things were off him. He then bowed to the Council, and said "Thank you very much!"

"Thank Fairy Tail." They replied absently.

The blue-haired mage turned around, and bowed in the same manner. "Thank you very much! Words can never express our gratitude."

"Rise, child." Makarov grumbled with a smile. Jellal did as he asked. "Come home with us. And don't forget to bring those cuties with you."

"Uh.. right..."

"Master!" Erza scolded.

"You!" The man who spoke against Jellal glared at them fiercely. "You better stay away from her, or I'll-"

Erza quickly requipped, and had his neck at a sword point in an instant. "Or you'll do what?" Her eyes were cloudy, and the man trembled in fear.

"M-monster!" He screamed, tripping and fumbling as he ran away.

"Where?!" Natsu shot up, who had finally come to. "What happened? What monster?" He roared into the ceiling, spewing flames from his mouth. "I'm all fired up!"

"The building!" Someone shouted.

"Natsu! Are you _trying_ to make the council hate me?!" Makarov screamed.

"Shut up Natsu!" Still equipped in her armor, she slammed him into the floor, and a large crack ran through it on impact.

"The floor!"

"Erza!"

"I apologize! Please hit me!"

"You better pay for that!" Gran Doma scowled.

_Aw, shit. We're still broke from repairing the guild._ Makarov thought. "Run brats!" He screamed.

"MAKAROV!"

"We'll pay for it later!" He hollered back. "Just send the bill!"

The guild rushed out of the building, laughing at the usual excitement.

"Erza, what is this?!" Jellal asked as he ran through the halls, the council's soldiers on their tails.

"Do not worry, it's normal for us."

"But... but..."

Erza laughed, and Jellal sweat-dropped as he realized she was dragging Natsu along, his limp body flailing in the air comically. Gray said from behind him "Wreak havoc and run! It's the Fairy Tail way!"

"I wanna go hoooooooooome!" Lucy wailed.

* * *

"Ultear! Ultear!" The black-haired woman glanced at Meredy, as she rushed up to her.

"What is it Meredy?"

"Jellal!" She said excitedly, bouncing on her toes. "They said he's innocent! Us too!"

Ultear gaped at her, truly shocked. "Us too?"

She nodded. "They said we could all join Fairy Tail!" Meredy grabbed her hands and started asking her "Can we?! Pleasepleaseplease?!"

Ultear smiled in response. "If Jellal joins, we'll join."

"Yay!" She squealed. "Let's go wait at the guild and surprise them!"

"Why not?" Meredy squealed again and began rushing toward the guild, spinning and skipping as she went along, with Ultear closely following.

* * *

Lucy staggered to the entrance of the building, purely exhausted. The idiots had left her behind!

_Oh, that's right... Gotta find the little girl..._ She thought to herself tiredly._ Thank her too... _She was certain that golden glow and the sudden change of hearts back there was her doing. But the magic power in it was immense. She still found it hard to believe that it came from her.

As if on cue, the Teller Mage appeared before her. But something seemed wrong. Her eyes were blank, and a strange, misty gray. Weren't they brown before? Cautiously, Lucy raised her hand in greeting, and stuttered "H-hi... Could you tell me-"

"There will be a dragon." Celestia said, cutting her off. The little girl's voice sounded strange. As blank and emotionless as her eyes. "It will take him away."

"Wait, what?" Lucy was lost. "What dragon? Who's him?"

"He will fight a different dragon. Two others will be by his side." She continued.

Suddenly, the girl look panicked, but she went on. "One will be left. And it won't be him."

"He will die! HE WILL DIE!" She screeched, her voice filling the massive hall.

Lucy was still unsure, but there was something behind her words that shivered her to the core. Something dark, and it terrified her greatly. "W-what?..." She whispered. She had to know. She had to know who '_him'_ was.

Just then, the girl collapsed, her small form hitting the floor almost inaudibly. Lucy screamed, and rushed over to her. She wasn't dead right?! No way she could be dead!

"Wait! Wait!" Lucy jerked her head up to see a man rush over to them, his face pale. "I... I'll take care of her." He knelt on one knee and picked her up, carefully cradling her in his arms. He slowly began walking away, leaving Lucy behind.

"Wait!" She stood up, her knees covered in dust. "What happened? Will she be alright? I could-"

"NO! No! You mustn't tell _anyone!_" He turned to face her, fear and concern mixed in his eyes, but concern overlapped the other completely.

At Lucy's shocked expression, he took a couple of shaky breaths and said "No... thank you... She will be alright..." He looked mournfully at her, tears threatening to spill from his eyes. "Just please... don't tell anyone..."

Lucy slowly nodded, and said softly "I understand. But please, if you ever need anything come to my guild."

The man half-heartedly nodded, and said "Thank you."

He slowly walked away, his footsteps fading into the walls.

* * *

**My longest chapter yet... I seriously need to be more consistent with my chapter lengths...**

**I had originally planned a little something else after, but after that scene, it just seemed wrong. So I will put it in next chapter.**

**Jellal is going to Fairy Tail! :) And _'him'_... As much as I love you all, no clues! Wonder what will happen next as I sit here wondering what will happen next as well... xD I'm such a horrible author, not planning out my stories. **

**PI had fun making the names for the Dark Guilds. Especially Ebony Wolf. C: It sounds cool.**

**I hope you liked this chapter, I will be back another soon! :D Thanks for reading! As always, reviews are much appreciated~ ;)**


	12. Chapter 11: Love

**Herro everybody! *waves* I'm here with chapter 11! \^.^/**

**Got lots of positive comments last chapter. (Of course, all the comments you've given me so far have been positive *heart*) I was kind of panicking about Celestia because I've seen totally awesome OC's that get negative comments so I'm just like 'well if they don't like her, then they'll hate mine' but alas, you people are totally wonderful :D**

**And I've finally figured out to do about the Grand Magic Games... it never existed! *claps* Sorry if you wanted it, but there isn't really much point because it would be exactly the same as the one in the manga (no reason to start a new one) and it would just complicate things. I will, however, probably squeeze in some of the new characters from that. ^.^ Actually, you could say that from now on, there will be an entirely new plot.**

**Um... I'm a betareader now so... if you gave me something to read, I would be very happy ^^**

**And there will be swearing in here.**

**_Special thank you to Cat-Stat-Ave, who gave me a few ideas for this chapter. :D_**

* * *

"Meredy?! Ultear?!" Jellal gaped at the two women in shock, who were leisurely sitting at one of the tables.

"Jellal~!" Meredy jumped at him, nearly knocking him over. The former Grimoir Heart member spied Erza looking at her with an evil eye, but the red-head quickly turned away.

He pried off his guildmate and looked at Ultear. "Wh-what are you guys doing here?..."

Ultear pointed at Meredy. "She wanted to surprise you. What choice had I but to follow along?" The older women then looked sternly at Jellal. "We were very worried. Please don't do anything so stupid next time."

Jellal sighed, and looked down. "Yeah.. I'm sorry... Hey!" He protested.

"Hey Mom, will I be stupid like that when I'm in love?" Meredy whispered loudly to Ultear.

"I hope not." She responded in kind.

"Though I highly respect you two, I don't approve of you judging Jellal's decisions in such a manner." Erza cut in, her voice edged.

"Oh, come on Erza! We were only kidding!" Meredy chirped.

The men in the guild looked at the pink-haired girl in awe. Not many people had the guts to even _try_ to speak to Erza after using that voice, never mind kid around with her so carelessly.

"What she means is, we respect you as well." Ultear aid solemnly. "And do not worry. we know Jellal cares about you- highly." She glanced at Meredy, who nodded in confirmation.

Erza's dislike for Meredy quickly melted away, a blush replacing it instead. "D-does he really?..."

Jellal looked away, trying to hide his face. Everyone on the guild smirked.

"So Jellal, 'ya joining?" Cana asked. She had taken a liking to the two members of Crime Sorciere, and knew that if a certain blue-haired mage left, they would as well.

Jellal looked hesitantly at the master. "C-can I really?..."

"Of course."

"Er... I guess so." He mumbled. He was then showered in cheers by the guild. Even Erza clapped a little.

"The three of you, speak to Mirajane later. She'll give you your tattoos."

"Yay! We're in Fairy Tail now!" Meredy shrieked.

"Meredy!" The girl turned to see a familiar mage rushing toward her, and opened her arms in response.

"Juvia!" She squealed, embracing her tightly. She then pulled away, and began throwing question after question on her. "How've you been? How's Gray doing? Ooh, you changed your look! You should totally keep your hair like that. And oh my gosh, I'm your guildmate now!" She shrieked, jumping up and down.

Erza watched as the two moved their conversation to a table, Meredy talking excitedly and Juvia slipping in a few words of her own when she could.

She then turned to Makarov, who seemed deep in thought. "Master, what was that magic back there?"

"It was the girl's... but it was extremely powerful... Perhaps too much so." The old man looked disturbed, which puzzled Erza.

She furrowed her eyebrows. The Teller Mage's magic was very strong, but was it really all that unusual? "...Master?"

"Erza, you are aware that the use of magic affects the human body, correct?"

Erza nodded, and he continued. "If used too rapidly, or used beyond the actual limit, it causes the body to deteriorate. That child..." He tapped his staff on the wooden floor. "I'm worried that her body can't handle that much magic power. Not only is she small, but she is very young." He then began walking back to his office, muttering "I need to keep an eye in her..."

Just then, Lucy walked in. _Where has she been_? Erza wondered. _And... Why does she look so unsettled?_

"Lucy!" Natsu yelled. He immediately ran up to her, but slowed when he saw her expression. "Are you okay?"

Lucy forced a smile, something everyone but Natsu saw rather clearly. "I'm fine! Don't worry about me."

He brightened up. "Okay!" He then stuffed a paper into he hands. "We're going on an S-Class mission tomorrow! Erza's taking us."

"Defeat a Jutsu Shiki Mage... 5,000,000 jewels..." She mumbled aloud. "Warning- likes to torture?" She handed him back the paper. "He sounds like a total creep."

He shrugged. "It's an easy mission. And between the five of us- Wendy and Charle aren't coming- we get..." Lucy sweat-dropped as he tried to count off his fingers, then gave up in exasperation and grinned. "A lot."

"You're an idiot." The blonde mage looked around, then brightened up when she saw Levy waving to her.

"Lu-chan! I got them right here!" The Script Mage yelled, tapping the stack of papers before her.

"Coming!" She turned and grabbed Natsu by the wrist, leading him to the table. "Come on, Natsu! She translated the carvings!"

"Wow, really?!" He then picked up the pace, and now Lucy was the one being dragged. "Igneeeeeeel!"

The two sat down at the table, along with Wendy, Gajeel, and of course, Levy. "So what is it?"

"It's a story!" She announced. "But it's kinda weird."

"Weird how Levy-san?" Wendy asked in her childish voice.

"Just read it Shrimp." Gajeel said gruffly.

Levy rolled her eyes, but did as he asked. She cleared her throat, and began reading.

"Once upon a time, there was a princess, who lived in a castle with her parents, the king and queen of the land. It was a relatively small kingdom, but it prospered." People turned to look at her, for story-telling was not something that happened often. They began listening, some even scooting closer. Levy blushed slightly at the attention, but continued.

"The princess had all she could ever want. Jewels, dresses, money... and love. Love from her people, and love from her parents, for she was kind, beautiful, and strong. Life was wonderful for her."

"Until one day, a large, nearby kingdom threatened her parents. That if they did not hand over the princess as his bride, he would lay waste to their kingdom. That kingdom was lead by a prince, who recently inherited the throne from his deceased father."

"The princess's parents did not know what to do. They despised the prince, but loved their people. They had neither the men nor money to fight them back."

"But, the princess, being as kind as she was, accepted, knowing that if she didn't, all those she cared about would perish before her eyes. So she went with the prince, silently crying when he wasn't looking."

"The prince was awful to her. He treated her as a slave, beating her when he wasn't satisfied, and toyed with her for amusement." Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Natsu scowling.

"Everyday, the princess would stare out the window and into the sunset, praying for someone to come take her away."

"And one day, someone did. But it wasn't another prince- it was a dragon. The dragon asked her to jump on his back, and even though she had never met one such as him before, she trusted him, and did as he asked. Together, the two rode into the sunset, never to be seen again."

"And so the dragon saved the princess from the prince." She finished.

"This story..." Lucy whispered. "I never thought I'd hear it again..."

"It's a stupid story." Gajeel snorted.

"See!" Natsu shouted, jumping up. "The dragon did save the princess! And Lucy heard it too!" He crossed his arms triumphantly, remembering when they had all teased him about it when he was younger.

"But Natsu, it's usually better the other way." Mira said over her shoulder, still drying dishes. "With the prince, the princess can be healthy, raise good children, be taken care of."

"And what if the prince is a total ass?!" He retorted. He narrowed his eyes, not liking where this was going.

She paled. "Well like I said... it's usually not like that. And she'll be taken care of. Isn't that what matters?"

He snorted. "And since when can't a dragon take care of a human?"

"There are other things human need than just being protected from enemies Natsu!"

"I DON'T CARE, dammit!" He roared, finally losing it. "I can take care of Lucy better than any stupid prince can!"

Silence sweeped over the guild, and everyone froze. Lucy gaped at him in shock, and her brain slowly tried to register what he said.

Mira broke the silence, and giggled. "Ha! You fell-"

"I beg to differ, Dragon Slayer." Loke materialized in front of Natsu, his expression dead serious. "You? Protect Lucy? I think not." The Celestial Spirit walked over to him, closing the already short distance. "One day, that prince will be a king, and he will have all the power he needs."

Natsu growled. "No king is stronger than a dragon."

"Wait... please stop..." Lucy whimpered. She didn't want to see them fight. They were two of her best friends!

"Oh? Is that right?" Loke's hands began to glow, signaling the use of magic. "Why don't we test that theory?"

"My pleasure. Bring it on!" He combusted into flames, and Lucy watched in horror as scales began creeping up his face. Was he really planning to fight him?

She rushed forward, and stepped between them. "Please stop!" She cried in dismay. She looked each of them in turn, a pleading look in her eyes.

The two men looked at her, then each other. A silent agreement passed between them, and their magic slowly retreated. "For Lucy." Natsu snarled. He then turned, and stalked out of the guild. "I'm leaving." Before exiting the building, he turned and glared at Loke. "This is not over."

"No, it isn't." He said coldly. The Spirit got ready to leave as well, but before going he said to Lucy "There is something I must speak to you of later on."

"O-okay..." She said shakily.

"What the hell..." Gajeel muttered. There was tension in the air, preventing the guild members from teasing Lucy about what Natsu had blurted out.

"S-sorry everyone... I think I'll go home..." The Celestial Spirit mage shakily rose to her feet, and slowly walked out the door without a second glance behind her.

"Hey, where's Mira?" A random person asked.

* * *

"Dammit!" Natsu roared, hitting a nearby tree with as much strength as he can muster. "Dammit all!" He could protect Lucy! Better than anyone can! Who are they to say otherwise?!

"Why couldn't she just let us battle it out?..." He growled. Now he had all this anger and stress and shit and he didn't know how to deal with it.

"Natsu." The said mage turned around to see Mirajane walking toward him, her expression unusually serious.

He grinned. Perfect. "Mira! Fight me!" He lunged at her, his fist coated with flames. Mira quickly used Takeover: Satan Soul, and easily stopped his fist with her own. Before Natsu could react, she yanked him close and flipped him onto his stomache, gripping his wrists tightly.

"You are weak, Natsu. Your eyes are clouded with anger."

"Shaddup!" He spat. He then made himself to roll over, forcing Mira onto her back, and jumped up, preparing for a roar. Mira, however, anticipated this and quickly flung him into the air, and flew after him.

"You could never protect Lucy like this Natsu! Control yourself!"

"You don't understand!" He screamed. Mira blinked as his hot tears fell onto her face. "ROAR OF THE FIRE DRAGON!"

The demon quickly dodged, with little room to spare. She hissed as the fire grazed her arm, and shot towards him at lightning speed.

She gripped him by the shoulders, and yelled right into his face "I lost Lisanna Natsu! I lost her because my brother was angry and he tried to protect us!" She then threw him onto the ground, the earth around him deepening from the impact. She dove for him, preparing to send a flying kick.

"At least you have her back!" He screeched, turning over so her kick only hit the ground near him.

"You never lost Lucy, Natsu!"

"Yes I did! She likes Loke!" He swiped his hand across his face, trying to no avail to block the onsteady stream of tears.

"Natsu, you listen to me!" She yanked him close, and hissed "She loves you Natsu! And only you!"

"How would you know?!"

Mira gently pressed her forehead to his, and said quietly "Because it's so obvious." Even with her frightening appearance, her kindness showed through.

Natsu's eyes were wide as he stared, and Mira smiled as his tears slowly stopped flowing.

She changed back to her original form, and released him, choosing instead to grip the area his fire had burned her. "Go tell her Natsu."

The woman smiled as she saw him beam, and he nodded.

She watched as his walk broke into a run, then into a sprint. After she could see him no longer, she slowly trudged back to the guild.

_I'd say that was a job well done_. Mirajane said to herself as she stretched her muscles. She hadn't fought like that in a while. _Now for Levy and Gajeel._

* * *

"Big Brother, do you have feelings for Lucy?"

Leo jumped in shock, and gaped at the maid. "No! I'm merely testing Natsu."

"Testing for what purpose?" Virgo asked in her usual, monotonous tone.

"To see how far he's willing to go for her. Of course, I already know that he's strong- If Lucy hadn't stopped us back there he would most definitely have beaten me. He could protect her better than I can. But that's not enough. I need to know that he will be there for her, no matter what. And he needs to realize his feelings before it's too late. I'm just trying to help that along." He closed his eyes, and smiled. "Besides, an old friend of mine had already captured my heart long ago."

Virgo looked at him in surprise, and then smiled. "I see..."

Loke gawked. She just displayed two cases of emotion in a row! His face paled when Virgo suddenly called "Aries! Would you please come and punish me?"

The ram quickly rushed over, and started apologizing to Virgo, and Loke took that as a cue to leave. "Oh, would you look at the time! I have matters to attend to, so please excuse me." He then disappeared in a flash of light, and Aries apologized once more.

The two women instinctively looked over to Horologium, who happened to be nearby.

"What are you two staring at?... I ask."

* * *

"Levy-san... Is that really what the carvings say?"

"Well yes, but... I think Lu-chan forgot something. I'm going to that cave tomorrow, just to make sure." There was a lot of things the script mage didn't understand. Why would a dragon write a story like that? What was it doing on the walls of a stone cave? From what Lu-chan had told her, it was a relatively small one.

And who were Lucille Heartfilia and Storimion?

"I'll go with you." Gajeel said roughly.

Levy raised an eyebrow. "Ya' sure?"

He snorted. "Not like I can depend on those two losers to keep you safe."

"Hey!" They protested.

"You would know about that." She grumbled. When Gajeel cringed, she pouted and looked away.

"What about you Wendy?" Levy asked the little Dragon Slayer. "Would you like to come?"

She shook her head. "I'm busy tomorrow. Sorry Levy-san!"

The girl looked at her curiously. "What _have_ you been busy with? Ever since the festival I've barely seen you in the guild at all."

"At the festival I won a book full of healing spells written by Porlyusica-san, and she's been teaching them to me." She then looked at the exit, and muttered "Actually, I think it's time for me to leave now." The blue-haired girl got up and skipped away, yelling over her shoulder "Bye Levy-san! Bye Gajeel-san!"

Levy waved, and Gajeel merely muttered "Tch."

Levy looked over at him in disdain. "You could at least try to be nicer."

"Whatever. So what time are we going?"

* * *

Lucy sat on her bed, knees curled up to her chest and rocking back and forth. The scene she had witnessed a few minutes before upsetted her greatly. She liked them both! Why are they fighting?

_"I can protect Lucy better than stupid prince can!" _

Lucy flushed, then buried her head between her knees. Does he...

"Hello Lucy." Leo materialized in front of her, and gave a short bow. "I'm here to discuss that matter I spoke of earlier."

"Oh... okay." The Celestial Spirit Mage looked up, and shifted so her legs were bent and splayed out beside her. Instinctively, she grabbed her Plue, and squeezed it. "What is it?"

"Every 1,000 years- in the Celestial Spirit world- we have something called the Day of the Closing. On that day, starting at midnight, the Master Gate between our worlds will close. During that time, Celestial Spirits cannot be summoned." He then looked at her, concerned, "So please be very careful tomorrow." The lion then began rubbing at his temple. "Actually, I would prefer it if you just stayed home."

Lucy blinked. "But I have an S-Class mission tomorrow."

* * *

Natsu ran like he never ran before. She loved him! She. Loved. Him!

He skidded to a stop in front of her apartment, and jumped up to the window.

* * *

Loki gaped at her."What?! Then don't go! They'll understand!"

She shook her head. "I have rent to pay."

* * *

His eyes widened as he peeked into her room. _Why is he__ here?_

* * *

"Dammit! What's a stupid rent compared to your life?!"

"It'll be okay." She smiled at him. "I have Natsu to protect me."

* * *

She's_ smiling... _He thought numbly. _She's smiling. She's happy with Loki._

He quickly left, the sight too much for him.

He had never felt more hurt in his entire life.

* * *

Loki snorted.

"A-and the others too!" She added hurriedly. "I mean, if Erza there, what could go wrong?" She gave a nervous laugh, and Loki sighed.

"Fine. But if anything happens..." He started leaving, his body slowly fading away "There will be one less Dragon Slayer in the world."

* * *

"Natsu!" The blue Exceed looked up to so his friend stumble into the house.

The cat rushed up to hug him, but quickly stopped when he saw his face. "What's wrong?"

"It... it's nothing..." Natsu dragged his feet over to his hammock, and crawled into it. "Just tired."

"...You wanna go to Lucy's?"

"No!" He snapped.

Happy flinched, and Natsu looked at him with a pained expression. "I... I'm sorry... I don't feel like it today..." He felt bad about keeping his best friend in the dark, but he just couldn't talk about it. He couldn't.

Happy climbed into the hammock with him and snuggled into the Dragon Slayer's chest in reassurance. Natsu gave a sad smile, and squeezed him back.

The cat wiped the tears off his face as they came along, and the two fell asleep.

* * *

_Oh... Natsu's not coming today? _Lucy looked out the window, and stars blinked at her.

She crawled into bed and pulled up the covers. It's been a long time since she's ad the whole house to herself. She should be thankful. But why does she feel so lonely?

_Oh well... Maybe he's just pissed off about today... _Hugging her Plue, she slowly nodded off and went to sleep.

**~Next morning~**

Lucy tapped her foot impatiently as she waited at the station. Erza paced back and forth, her fists clenched tightly and her mountain of luggage behind her.

_I told those fools 6 o' clock sharp! What part of 'sharp' don't they understand?! _The scarlet-haired mage seethed.

"Sorry I'm late!" Gray rushed up to them, drenched in sweat. Despite his apology, Erza still got in one good whack to his head.

Lucy's eyebrow twitched. What exactly had he been doing?

She beamed as she saw Natsu a little further behind, and Happy flew towards her, burying himself in her chest. "Morning Lucy!"

"Good morning, Happy!" She smiled at Natsu, and chirped "Good morning Natsu!"

Her face fell as he turned away, and muttered 'morning.'

"We're all here right?" Hearing no response, she said "Alright, let's leave."

"Hey! You didn't hit Natsu!" Gray protested.

"He'll suffer enough on the train ride." She said simply.

* * *

"Levy! Gajeel!" The two said mages turned around to see Cana rushing toward them. "You mind taking this?"

She dropped a lacrima into Levy's handed, who stared at at in wonder. "What's this for?"

"It's a Teleport Lacrima." She explained. "I checked out my cards and got a really bad reading today. I had originally waned to give it Natsu and his crew, but they already left."

She looked around, shooting glares at the men who stood gawking at her. Levy's face flushed as well as she realized the woman was wearing nothing but a t-shirt over her undergarments. A white one, at that.

"To use it, just hold it and think of the place you wanna go. And this is the updated version, so if you think of a person you wanna be near, that works too." She glanced at Gajeel. "And if you wanna go with her, make sure you're touching her."

"Um... okay."

"Thanks Cana!" Levy exclaimed. She knew that these were ridiculously rare. How had she managed to get a hold of one?

She nodded. "You can only use it once, so don't waste it. It was a pain to get." She added. No way was she telling them she got it from Gildarts. "Just keep our friends safe."

Levy nodded vigorously, and Gajeel grunted.

_Dammit... Still feel uneasy..._ She thought to herself. She whipped her head to nearby teen, and shouted "Quit starin' ya brat!"

* * *

And sure enough, Natsu did suffer. Though this time, he merely kept to himself, and stayed quiet the whole time.

The three of them glanced at him, worried. Natsu had _never_ been quiet before, much less on a moving vehicle.

_I miss Lucy... _He thought to himself as he clutched his stomach.

He then shook his head furiously, and thought _No! I can't do __that anymore!_

_Not anymore... _He thought sadly.

"Natsu?" He looked up to see Lucy with the saddest face he'd ever seen. It made him want to jump over and hug her right this second.

But he couldn't. "I'm fine." He choked. He then lay down on the seat, and turned over.

She fell silent, and Natsu focused on breathing, forcing himself not to cry. He was aware that Happy was just as upset as Lucy was, and clenched his fist where they couldn't see.

"We're here." The two looked up to see Erza and Gray waiting for them. They slowly got up, and followed them off the train.

Lucky for them, the town hall was quite close to the station. They got there in a few minutes, silent the whole while.

Erza looked around uncomfortably. This town was too quiet. There wasn't a single person to be seen.

When they reached the building, she knocked, and yelled "We're mages of Fairy Tail! We're here for more details on the mission."

The door opened, and an older man stood before them. "Of course, we were waiting for you- oh dear Lord, is that your luggage?!" He looked up at the stacked suitcases, and knew immediately that this woman was extremely strong.

They all pointed at Erza, who nodded in confirmation. "As you can see, it will be quite troublesome to bring along. I hope you won't mind me leaving it here."

"Why, yes! Er, of course not. Please, come in."He held the door as they walked in, then followed.

The five mages walked in to see a rather small, but cozy waiting room, with a small aquarium in the corner of the room. Happy immediately rushed over to it, and pressed up against the glass. The others found seats throughout the room and made themselves comfortable.

The man sat near them and began speaking. "As I'm sure you know, there is a Jutsu Shiki Mage running amok in the forest. We need you to eliminate him as soon as possible."

"But why is this ranked S-Class?" Lucy asked.

"The forest itself is very dangerous, and the mage has defeated every other we've sent after him. We later found out that he tends to trap people in his Jutsu Shiki, and tends to... torture them to near death. He never kills, though I find that worse." He leaned back, and buried his face in his hands. "They would always come stumbling into the town, covered in blood and sometimes missing limbs. That's why we always notify the townspeople when we hire more mages- so they can stay home for the day to avoid seeing it. It's the reason why the town is so empty."

"That's awful..." Lucy whispered.

"But even that's not enough." He choked "Lately, he's been going after the citizens. They would just disappear one day and come back later that evening, never the same again."

"We'll kill him." Erza growled. "We will find him, and destroy him. That I promise."

"Thank you..." He whispered. "Please... he's already taken nine people... even my own daughter."

She nodded, and gestured for the others to get up. "Let's go immediately. I would like to get this done today, before he can hurt anyone else."

The nodded back at her, and followed her out the door, grim expressions on their faces. Even Happy looked serious.

They left the building, and walked to the forest, stopping at its entrance. She turned to face them, and discussed their plan. "Since there are traps, we'll be going as groups. I'll go with Gray. Natsu, you go with Lucy and Happy. When you find him, rip every bone from his body before killing him. Got it?"

They nodded in agreement. Lucy and Happy gulped, but did the same.

"Good. Me and Gray will go this way. You guys go that way." The two jumped into the trees, leaving Lucy, Happy and Natsu behind them.

"I... guess we should go now." Lucy said weakly.

Natsu kept silent, and walked on ahead of Lucy. Biting her lip, she followed, scooping up the cat into her arms.

Lucy felt like crying as his back was turned to her. His shoulders moved back and forth slightly, showing no sign of stopping. This felt so wrong. They were always side by side, never like this. "Natsu, please tell me what's wrong!" She cried.

"I'm fine." He kept walking.

Now Lucy was getting a little angry. "Natsu, you are not okay!" She ran ahead, and turned to face him. "Tell me what's wrong!"

He merely stared, then shouldered past her. He stopped as he heard a sob escape from Lucy.

"Why won't you let me help you?..." She asked, tears streaming down her face.

Natsu rounded on her, and snapped "Because you're the reason I'm sad in the first place!" He then jerked back, realizing the severity of what he had just done.

"Natsu..." Happy whimpered.

Natsu shook his head wildly, and sprinted ahead. He had to get away. He can't look at them anymore. He can't.

Suddenly, he felt himself hit a wall, and fell from the impact. Strange black letters glittered in front of him. He cautiously felt the area around him, finding tha it surrounded him on all sides and was very... very small. He couldn't even spread his arms all the way.

"Jutsu Shiki..."

"Hello there." Natsu turned to see a man walk into the clearing. He had dark hair that sprang off to the side, and a tattoos running up his arms. His black eyes were empty, and his smile cruel.

"Who the hell are you?" He snarled.

"Why, I believe you came looking for me. The Jutsu Shiki Mage?" He was mere feet away from Natsu. "Feel free to call me Diabolos."

"That's a crap name." If only the Jutsu Shiki weren't there, he could have pummeled him right this second. That didn't stop him from trying though.

He swore as his fists harmlessly bounced off the wall, and sparked as he pulled away. "The hell..."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." He chuckled. "I made them so that is you tried to escape, it would shock you. Of course, you wouldn't be able to anyhow. It' just fun to watch." He laughed as Natsu tried to summon his flames, only to come up empty. "And you can't use your magic either."

He growled. Even if the lightning was half-assed compared to Laxus's, it still hurt.

"I know you didn't come alone. No one ever does."

His eyes widened, and his fierce protective sense for his guild mates kicked in. "You stay away from her!" He screamed.

Diabolos ignored him, and mused "But that's even better than if they came alone... The other could watch while I have my fun with them."

Natsu's face turned to horror as he saw Lucy running into the clearing, tears no longer flowing, but traces of them were left on her cheeks. "Oh? I believe that's her right there."

"Natsu!" Happy wailed.

"Run Lucy!"

"I don't think so." Natsu jumped back as he thrust a sword straight through the Jutsu Shiki, shallowly slicing his shoulder. "Girl, if you leave, I'll make sure he screams so loud you can hear it from the next town." Natsu growled as he realized the reason for the limited space.

"I wasn't planning on leaving anyway!" Lucy snapped. She pulled out her whip, which twisted and lashed without her even moving her hand. She hissed over her shoulder "Happy, go get help." The blue Exceed nodded, and flew off.

_Why can't she use her spirits?... _Natsu thought to himself.

_Dammit... _Lucy hissed to herself._ I have to fight alone this time. _She looked up, watching the man throw the sword and catch it repeatedly, a smirk plastered on his face. _If all he has is his sword... I think I can win. Or at least hold out 'til Erza and Gray get here. As long as he doesn't trap me._

"Shadow Play: Pillars." Lucy immediately jumped up, narrowly escaping the black poles that sprung from the ground. _Crap, he's gotta whole different magic!_ After landing neatly on the ground, she rushed toward the man for an attack of her own. _I have to finish this quick_.

"Shadow Play: Needle." She quickly turned to the side, but not before the long spike sliced at her calf.

"Lucy!" The blonde jumped back, and yelled "I'm alright!" She glanced at the cut. Shallow, but it stung like a bitch.

"Shadow Play: Fist." Lucy screamed as the attack caught her unawares, and sent her flying into a tree. The man smirked. "Shadow Play: Needle."

A long, thin projectile shot from the ground and straight into Lucy's stomach, and she coughed up blood. "LUCY!"

* * *

"Dammit!" Leo roared, thumping his fists against the gate. "Open, damn you!" The other spirits silently watched from behind him, their expressions grim.

"Old Friend, you must stop." The king rumbled. "If you force open the Master Gate, the worlds will misalign."

"I don't care!" The Spirit screamed. He struck the wall again, using his strongest magic, but the gate wouldn't give.

"And there's no guarantee that you will make it to the other side alive." He continued. "It's best to have faith in your friends."

"How can I?!" He cried in dismay. "She's getting killed right in front of me, and Natsu can't help her!"

Lucy's smile flashed in his mind._ "It'll be okay. I have Natsu to protect me."_

"That stupid idiot..." He hissed. "She depended on you. Why aren't you protecting her?!"

"Show faith Leo."

"I have none to give!" He wailed. "Why am I so weak..." He sobbed, slumping to his knees in front of the gate. "I promised my life to her, but now I can't give it..."

"Lucy... please, live..."

* * *

"So this is it?" Gajeel and Levy stopped in from of the cave, and Levy nodded. "This cave is freaking small! No way a dragon can fit here. Even a hatchling would have to squeeze through."

"That's why I wanted to check it out. In the carvings, there were the names Lucille Heartfullia and Storimion, most likely the authors. I'm thinking that a human was probably involved as well, one of Lucy's descendants." She furrowed her eyebrows, then added "Yeah, it would have to be something like that. Lu-chan said she heard this story too."

The two slowly entered the cave, surprised at the evenness of the terrain. It was almost unnatural.

After a few moments, they reached a wall. And Levy gave a small cheer of triumph.

"What is it, Shrimp?"

"There's something behind this!" She said excitedly. "Think about it, didn't the cave seem a lot longer from the outside?"

Now that Gajeel thought about it, it did actually. "So you want me to break it?"

She shrugged. "I don't think it'll work, but feel free to try."

Gajeel narrowed his eyes. Did she underestimate him? He turned his right arm into a pole, and began battering at the wall, filling the cave with clangs and clashes.

The Dragon Slayer stopped, realizing that, indeed, this wasn't getting him anywhere. "What else you got then?"

She grinned. "Try my magic." She crossed her arms in front of her, and yelled "Anti-Script: Rewrite!" Suddenly, the symbols on the wall glowed, and it crumbled to a rubble.

Gajeel stared it it in shock. This girl had manage to totally destroy something that he couldn't so much as dent. But of course, he would never say that. "...That was a Jutsu Shiki?"

She nodded. "But it was hidden."

He nodded slowly, then suddenly remembered when he and Natsu were stuck behind Freed's runes. "Since when can you do it so quick?" Last time, it had taken her _ages_ to rewrite the runes.

"Ever since I got my second origin, I've been able to do automatic rewrites. My max is three though, before I run out of magic power."

"Sounds useful."

"I think so to, but I haven't had the chance to use it much." She began hopping over the rubble. "Let's go!"

* * *

Natsu watched in horror as Lucy fell to the ground, her blood trickling onto the grass. She slowly rose to her feet, her legs trembling and clutching her wound.

"Oh? That's interesting. You're tougher than you look." He commented. Natsu glared at him, his expression fierce enough to match Satan's himself. But sick in his own madness, the man only chuckled. "Don't get so mad. It's a relatively small wound." He laughed again as Natsu hit the wall again, and a crack as some of his knuckle bones broke, but he still continued, battering the Jutsu Shiki wall to no avail.

"Please stop Natsu..." Lucy pleaded. His fists were charred and covered in blood, and disfigured almost to the point where they were unrecognizable..

"No, you stop it Lucy!" He screamed, sobbing. "You don't need to protect me!"

"I don't know what I did to upset you Natsu... but I'm sorry. I hate seeing you like that, more than anything else."

"How touching." The man snarled. "But I'm kinda getting bored. Shadow Play: Thorns."

Lucy stumbled away, still clutching her stomach.

_Even with my second origin... I don't think I have the magic power to do this. Not without Gemini..._ She glanced at her wound, which still dripped blood. _But I have to try!_

She fell to the ground and began gathering her magic power, tilting her head up. She quickly began chanting, her lips moving at like a blur.

Diabolos narrowed her eyes, realizing that her next attack could be fatal.

Dammit... I have to do it faster... She clenched her teeth, and forced her power to gather immediately.

She felt the effects of it right away. Her body hurt so bad it felt as if she was dying. But she wasn't done yet. "O... 88 stars of the Heavens..." She gasped. "Shine!"

Orbs of light swirled around Diabolos, and converged. But she knew something was wrong right away. The magic wasn't nearly as powerful as it should have been.

Diabolos screamed, but when the light faded, he still lived, battered and standing.

Lucy slumped to the ground as he stalked over to her, his face one of pure fury. "You bitch!" He screamed. "That fucking hurt!"

"I don't even wanna torture you anymore. I just want you _dead!_" He growled, picking her up by her head. Her legs dangled, and Lucy grit her teeth. "Do you have _any_ idea how that makes me feel?!" He then turned around, giving Natsu a full view of Lucy's battered form, and held the sword to her neck. "And now, you die. Enjoy the view."

She smiled at him, tears streaming down her cheeks, much like his own. "I love you Natsu. I always have."

"LUCY!"

* * *

**Cliffhanger. xD Don't hate me too much, I'll try and update soon.**

**Oh, Natsu. Why are you such an idiot?**

**Natsu: Because that's how you made me.**

**Me: SHHH! It's not that different from Mashima Hiro's!**

**Natsu: Hey!**

**Lucy: ...I'm not gonna die here, right?**

**Me: ...Maybe...**

**Both: You're awful.**

**Anyways, for some reason I'm not really satisfied with this chapter. D: And I'm sorry if Natsu is kinda pathetic in this chapter, but he's got a lot going on and can you really break Jutsu Shiki with force? But there will be fighting scenes where he's totally epic so look forward to those.**

**So like, stay tuned! Reviews are forever appreciated.**


	13. Chapter 12: A Second Look

**I'm back! Like I promised! \^.^/**

**Honestly, I think my villain last chapter was rather shallow, (I think the entire chapter was a fail) but I couldn't think of anyway to 'define' him without making him sound like a total idiot. And as much as I love idiots (Fairy Tail's full of 'em) that wouldn't be suitable to the plot. So sorry if you hated him. (This is the last chapter you'll hear him in!)**

**And I thought I would get bombarded with things like 'GRAHHH! I HATE YOU HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME YOU BETTER YOUR ASS OVER HERE AND UPDATE!' but then, you people are kind lovely souls that I love from the bottom of my heart. So I got nothing of the sort. C:**

**I like how I kinda put Levy on the spotlight though. :3 I mean, she got her second origin too, but Mashima Hiro never let her do anything... ==**

**My, how time has passed... seems like only yesterday I wrote chapter one. Never thought I'd get this far. But it's all thanks to you people *hug hug squeeze squeeze* Enjoy chapter 12!**

* * *

_"LUCY!" _Gajeel clapped his hand over his ear as the familiar voice rang in his head.

"Dammit Salamander, why you gotta be so loud..." He muttered.

"Gajeel?..." Levy asked him, her eyes worried.

"Quick Shrimp, pull out the lacrima. Get us to Lucy."

The blue-haired mage nodded, then did as he asked, fear for her best friend etched on her face. She cupped the lacrima in her hands, and Gajeel rested his hand on her shoulder. "Please! Bring me to Lucy!"

Gajeel squinted as light enveloped him, and his surroundings disappeared.

* * *

"Wendy! Wendy!" The young girl turned around to see Happy stumble into Porlyusica's house, barely able to fly. He collapsed in exhaustion in Wendy's arms, and she asked "Happy! What's wrong?!"

"Lucy... Natsu..." He whimpered. "They need help..."

She gave a curt nod, and turned to Porlyusica. "Thank you so much for today Porlyusica-san! I must be going!" The little Dragon Slayer then called Charle, and the two zoomed off in the direction Happy came in.

"I didn't tell her where Natsu is..." Happy moaned.

Porlyusica tasked. "Worry about yourself. You used too much magic power." She picked up the cat and gently laid him in the bed, then turned away to make her medicine. "All she needs to know is the direction you came from. Her senses will tell her everything else."

"...Will they be okay?"

"However much I hate humans, I have to admit that they're the most persistent bunch I've ever seen. They won't be killed off so easily."

Happy sweat-dropped. "The two kinda seem unrelated."

"This is why I hate humans!" She barked.

"But I'm a-" Happy was quickly shut up when she shoved a spoon in his mouth.

"Just be quiet and take this!"

"Aye..."

* * *

_"LUCY!"_ Gray and Erza turned towards the sound, then each other.

"Natsu!" They shouted at the same time. Suddenly, Erza requipped into her fastest armor, and quickly dashed ahead, leaving Gray in the dust.

"Don't leave me behind!"

* * *

"Enjoy the view." Diabolos cackled.

"Anti-Script: Rewrite!" Lucy blearily looked up to see a small girl fly through the air, her arms crossed, and an Iron Dragon Slayer right behind her.

As soon as the Jutsu Shiki disappeared, Natsu and Gajeel rushed at Diabolos, who was frozen in shock. The force of their combined blows sent him flying straight through trees, out of sight and out of mind.

"Lucy!" The three mages gathered around her, the blonde mage now unconscious.

"It's my fault... It's my fault..." Natsu repeated over and over again. Her body was covered in bruises, and the few cuts she had bled profusely.

"Tch. She's losing too much blood." Gajeel then turned to Natsu, and gave him a good whack to the head. "Shaddup Salamander! If she ended up like this you probably couldn't help it."

"Everyone! Please back away!" The three looked up to see Wendy hovering in the air above them, Charle sweating from flying so quickly.

They did as she asked and the Dragon Slayer landed neatly beside her, immediately healing her the best she could.

"Will she be okay?" Levy asked, worried.

"She's lost so much blood..." She whispered, focusing on the wound on her stomach. "And these wounds are hard to close..." She turned to Natsu, who watched silently with empty eyes. "Natsu-san! What did she get hurt by?"

"Some kind of shadow magic..." He mumbled.

She nodded, as if she had already guessed and was making sure. "It must have entered her bloodstream. It'll take some time to drain it, and I won't be able to close the wounds until then." She chewed her lip. There had to be some place where she could do this properly.

"There's a town near here." Gajeel commented, reading her thoughts. "I don't know about a hospital, but all you need is a place with a bed and bandages right?" Wendy nodded.

"Just use this to get her back home." They turned around to see Ultear, handing them the Teleport Lacrima that the Levy and Gajeel had used just now.

Levy's eyes widened. "How?! That broke the second we used it!"

"My Arc of Time magic can turn anything to its past or future state. It applied to the lacrima as well."

The Script Mage gratefully took it from her hands, and Gajeel gave the woman a suspicious look. "Why are you here?"

"I just came to this town to shop. It's famous for it's clothing." She added. "But there was no one in the town, and I happened to hear a scream. So I ran over."

"...Coincidence?"

She shrugged. "Suppose so. Guess that's how fate works." She glanced at Lucy, who was in no better condition than she was a few minutes ago. "Should you really be standing here chatting? She needs help."

Levy quickly nodded, and instructed them all to touch her. Gajeel took her shoulder, like before, and Wendy grasped her arm, her other hand around Lucy's wrist. Natsu held Lucy by the hand. Levy thought of the guild's emergency room, and the whole group disappeared in a flash of light.

_Fate, huh?_... Ultear chuckled to herself. _Fate has a weird way of making me come here, filling my head with an undeniable need to shop_.

* * *

This was not his day. This was totally not his day.

Not only did he get beaten up by a girl and two psychopaths (ironic, coming from him), he didn't managed to _kill_ her.

But as much as he wanted to, he couldn't stay there. That pink-haired one would have given him hell on a plate. So he managed to slip away after being thrown into the trees.

He dragged himself away from the scene, never feeling so crappy in his entire life. He soon, however, stumbled upon a red-haired mage, wearing some weird-leopard print armor.

She narrowed her eyes, and Diabolos quaked. "You. You're the one who hurt Lucy." Crap! This was her friend!

He was so scared it wasn't even funny. If the pink-haired brat's face had looked like Satan earlier, then this woman was that times 100, with the ever-so-lovely addition of Medusa.

"You hurt my guild mate. For that, you die." She heard footsteps behind her and turned around to see none other than Gray. "Gray, look away and cover your ears."

Gray pouted, but turned, seeing her expression. He crossed his arms though, determined not to cover his ears.

Erza looked back to Diabolos to see he had taken the opportunity to run, and she dashed after him.

Gray changed his mind about not covering his ears when he heard the sickening sound of bones cracking, quickly followed by hoarse, chilling screams that sent tremors up his spine. He then became puzzled as he heard strange... shoveling sounds.

_Oh hell no_! The Ice Mage thought in horror. _She's not shoveling out his insides right?!_

He cautiously looked again to see Erza carrying a blade covered in blood from tip to hilt, covered in dirt, and a small mound protruded from the earht, a sword staked in the middle. Gray stared, and Erza explained "To save any wandering citizens the poor sight of his body."

"N-nice memorial you have there..."

"Fitting, is it not?" She said bitterly, her jaw going slack.

Gray slowly nodded, and followed the leaving mage out of the clearing.

* * *

Natsu sat near Lucy as Wendy worked late into the night healing her, resting his head on the back of his woven hands, which were propped up by the elbows on his knees. Wendy had healed his poor excuses for hands a while ago, though the pain still lingered. And not just in his fists either. The smell of Lucy's blood haunted him.

He gripped his shirt, trying to stop the aching in his chest. It was unfamiliar to him, and he didn't know how to deal with it. He couldn't protect Lucy. He already promised he would, yet he couldn't. He didn't.

He squeezed his hands together, feeling the urge to cry again the third time that day. But he couldn't cry for her. He didn't deserve to. He was the one who hurt her in the first place.

_If I didn't run ahead, she might not have gotten hurt._ He thought sullenly._ If I walked with her like I always did, we could've fought Diabolos together. I could have protected her._

_How the hell did this happen?_... He wondered to himself silently. _We only smiled at each yesterday._

But her smile hurt him too.

He looked up as the clock struck midnight, and suddenly felt himself being thrown against the wall.

"You idiot!" Loke screamed in his face. "How the hell could you let that happen?!"

He pushed the Spirit's hand away, and snorted half-heartedly "And where were you? Aren't you supposed to be her prince or some shit?"

"Don't give me that crap Natsu! I had no choice!"

"Guys... please stop..." Lucy moaned weakly. The two were too caught up in their dispute to notice however, semething that angered Wendy greatly. The blonde tried to sit up, only to slump back down from the effort.

"Lucy-san, please stop!" Wendy pleaded.

"She depended on you Natsu! How could you let her down like that?!"

"She doesn't want me!"

"Stop!" She gasped. But even that was too much for the mage in her weakened state, and she passed out again.

Wendy turned and scowled towards the two men, who hadn't heard a single thing.

Loki grabbed him again and gave him a hard shake. "How stupid can you be?! She already told you Natsu! She was dying and she fucking smiled and told you she loved you! What else do you need to open your eyes?!"

"She smiled at you too!" He screamed.

"You wanna know why she smiled?!" Loke pressed his face to Natsu's and roared "SHE WAS SMILING FOR YOU NATSU! SHE WAS TELLING ME SHE HAD YOU TO PROTECT HER!"

Natsu gaped at him on shock. "What?..."

Loki gave him a hard punch that flung him straight into the wall, and Wendy snapped.

She clenched her fists and stood up, and shouted "Natsu-san! Loki-san!"

"WHAT?!" The ferocity in their voices would've sent grown men running straight for the hills, but the 12-year old girl held her ground.

"I understand that this is a matter you must settle..." Her eyes were stormy, and she yelled "But you cannot fight here! You are the _last_ thing Lucy-san needs to recover!" She then thrusted her finger towards the door. "Leave! Or I will use my magic and _make_ you leave!" Her expression was more of a pout, but it was effectively threatening.

The two looked at her shocked by her glare. They then proceeded to shooting daggers at each other.

"You first." Natsu muttered.

"I'd rather not have you kick my ass down the stairs, thank you very much." Loki retorted.

"OUT!"

The two flinched, and Natsu quickly jumped out the window while Loki proceeded to using the stairs.

After the room fell silent. Wendy sat back down and resumed her treatment. "Men..." She muttered.

The Sky Dragon Slayer turned to reach for something, and Lucy smiled.

_She grew up so much_... Lucy thought silently to herself, a small smile turning on her lips. _She grew up when we weren't looking_...

Wendy turned back to Lucy, and thought _Lucy-san looks awfully happy... I wonder what she's thinking._

* * *

Natsu waited outside, scarf flapping in the night breeze. Loki soon stumbled out of the building, ready to roll.

"Let's finish what we started, Leo." He ignited his right hand, the flame almost dazzling in the night.

"Indeed, Salamander." Loke used his magic in kind, and the two rushed at each other. This was no longer a fight for Lucy. It was a fight between men. For now, they will not speak. They will fight now, and talk afterwards.

This time, Natsu's mind felt clear. Not like when he first challenged Loke, or when he fought Mirajane. His battle senses were at their max. He ducked down to avoid Loke's fist, who did the same. He then spun on his hand, and swung his leg, yelling "Fire Dragon's Claw!"

The Spirit jumped back to dodge the blow, and he chanted "O Regulus, grant me your strength..." He then planted his feet in the ground, and aimed his hand directly at Natsu. "Regulus Beam!"

"Roar of the Fire Dragon!" The two forces exploded on contact, and sparks and showers swirled in the air.

Loke dropped his guard just for a second to watch the magnificient display, and Natsu ran at him straight through the flames, catching him unawares and landing a good solid hit to the jaw.

"Dammit..." He growled, ripping off his dismantled glasses. The lens hit the ground with a few clatters, then broke as Loke stepped on it and lunged for Natsu, his fists lighted.

The two exchanged blows for hours. Not stopping, not thinking, just fighting purely on instinct.

That doesn't mean they weren't trying their best though.

Scales had worked its way onto Natsu's jaw, and covered nearly half his face, signaling the use of Dragon Force. Leo, who had a hard time keeping up with the Dragon Slayer's furious strikes, only managed to block a few blows before another sent him sprawling backward. The Spirit was slowly being overwhelmed.

The fight raged on over several hours, progressing with the rising sun. Though Natsu had taken a good many blows, he was still _far_ less tired than his opponent.

Loke had gone past his limit long ago, but he didn't give up. His pride wouldn't let him. He shakily stood up, and straightened his stance. "O Regulus... Grant me your power!" He panted. I_t's all or nothing_... He thought. "LION'S BRILLIANCE!"

As he had next to no magic power left, he slightly modified it so the rays would do more than just blind him. He watched through one eye as the intense light enveloped Natsu, hiding him from Loke's view. When the light faded however, the Spirit was dismayed to see that the attack left him virtually unscathed, mostly due to his scaled absorbing most of the impact, though he was rubbing at his eyes profusely.

Of course, that would've been the perfect time to give him heck, but at that very same moment his body finally chose to shut down. He fell to the ground, so exhausted that it this point nothing even hurt anymore.

"You win Salamander." He called out. "You beat me."

Natsu grinned, and walked over to him. Loke stared as he offered him a hand, then took it. "I'm not standing, you know."

Natsu pulled him up to a sitting position, and said "Then I'll sit." He thumped to the ground and did just that, crossing his legs. "So why were we fighting again?"

Loke thought for a moment, then remembered. "It was over Lucy."

"Oh, okay." Natsu then stuck out his tongue, and announced "Well, I won! So she's mine now!"

The pink-haired teen watched in confusion as Loke started chuckling, which soon came out as full-blown laughters. "What's so funny?"

After the joyous sounds subsided, he gasped "As much as I love her, I never wanted her that way. I love her the same way any spirit would love an owner such as she, though I suppose a little more would be accurate since she saved my life." He laughed again at Natsu's gawking face, then added "She was always yours Natsu. She was yours the second you were caught pulling her by the wrist to the guild, and has been ever since."

"Wh-what? Since back then? How?"

"We just felt it." Leo said simply. He looked up at the sky, its pitch-black abysses now lightened from the rising sun. "It's been a while since then... about 8 years."

Natsu did the same, and muttered "Yeah..."

"So are you two children settled now?"

The boys looked over to see Makarov, who stood with a content expression on his face. Even sitting, the two of them were still taller.

Loke smiled, and said "I'm older than you Gramps." He knew he was contradicting himself, but calling Makarov by any other name was simply unthinkable.

"I might be." Natsu added, remembering when he was trapped behind the Jutsu Shiki Freed had put up.

"You were once a part of Fairy Tail, therefore you will always be considered my child, regardless of how many years you've lived. Actually..." He looked at the Spirit, his eyes barely open. "You still have your stamp, no?"

He sheepishly scratched the back of his head, and muttered "I do actually. Couldn't bring myself to take it off."

Makarov nodded, and then turned to Natsu. "And you." He tapped his stick. "The same thing applies, but I am still very much older. Your magic is what held you back, not your age."

"Oh... That's cool. I should go tell Gajeel later, he's still pretty much convinced that he's a geezer." He paused then changed his mind. "Nah, forget it."

Leo and Makarov chuckled, then Leo said "I best be going." He held out his fist to Natsu, and said "Take care of Lucy for me."

"Not like I'm letting you sit on your ass while I do all the work, but yeah." He bumped it, and the two exchanged grins. Leo then turned to Makarov, and said solemnly "Thanks for everything Gramps."

"Don't mention it."

Natsu and Makarov watched as Loke slowly faded away, leaving nothing behind but his broken glasses and the wounds on Natsu's person.

The two sat in silence for a short while, admiring the sun that was rising slowly over the horizon. Makarov then broke it, and said "I think Wendy's all done with the healing. You could go check up on Lucy."

"Yeah..." He suddenly shot up, remembering he had other friends. "What about the others?! Happy, Gray and Erza?!"

"Happy is resting at Porlyusica's house, and Erza and Gray are back at the guild. They already completed the mission and collected the money. You're free to take it whenever you wish."

Natsu sighed in relief, and absentmindedly nodded. He felt like a really bad friend now, forgetting about Happy. Money was the last thing on his mind.

_I think I'll go see Happy first._.. He thought. Without his blue haired friend, Wendy wouldn't have been there to save Lucy. _And I'll get him a fish too!_

Hands behind his head, and still battered but not quite beaten, he began walking towards the forest, determined to catch the biggest fish humanity and Exceeds have ever laid eyes on.

* * *

"Wendy?..." Porlyusica peeked into the emergency room, then smiled when she saw the young Dragon Slayer sleeping by Lucy's bed, resting her head on her arms.

The old woman walked over to the two females, and inspected Lucy. Her eyes widened when she saw that most of her wounds were healed.

"How on Earthland?..." She muttered. Wendy had truly outdone herself. Though the wounds were healed, there were still traces of them that could only be seen with a critical eye, which was how she knew there were a lot of them.

_Even the bruises_... She thought to herself. External bruises were usually unnecessary to treat, as they healed on their own over time, so Porluusica assumed that the girl only did it to ease Lucy's discomfort. _Such a kind girl... She used the new techniques well._

But she couldn't have Wendy sleeping in such a position. Her back would break years before its time. She quickly prepared a tea that will help her sleep and restore her magic energy, then proceeded to gently shaking her awake.

"Oh..." Wendy rubbed at her eyes, and breathed "Grandeeney-san..." Oh, how she disliked that name. But she just didn't have the heart to tell the girl otherwise at the moment

"No need to wake up child. Just go sleep on the sofa. I made you tea, so try to drink a little bit of that."

"Okay Grandeeney-san..." She wobbled out the door, bracing her arms on the walls for support.

Alone with a sleeping Lucy, Porlyusica sighed. These humans get into so much trouble, it's almost other-worldy.

She finished up Wendy's job, healing the few marks that were left and slowly feeding her the same tea she gave to Wendy.

When she finished, she lounged on a chair and relaxed, keeping a close eye on the Celestial Spirit Mage. Though her wounds were trivial, she had used up her magic to the point of near death. And magic was a mage's lifeline.

"Stupid Dragon boy... Leaving a girl to fend for herself." She muttered. She shook her head, then thought _I've grown soft_.

She jumped as she saw Lucy stir, and walked over to the girl. The blonde slowly opened her eyes, and, seeing the old woman, she sat up and smiled. "Where are we?"

Porlyusica blinked. "You're in the guiild's emergency room. Do you not remember getting injured?"

"I got injured?!" Alarmed, she threw off the covers and began inspecting her body for any wounds, but of course, seeing none, looked at her suspiciously. "From what?"

Porlyusica sighed, and shook her head. "No, never mind." No point in telling her what happened. "How are you feeling?"

"Pretty good, actually." The girl stretched, and twisted her body. "Is it okay if I go home?"

Porlyusica thought for a moment, then nodded. "I don't see why not." She then turned away and grumbled "And don't come back. You humans stink."

Lucy sweat-dropped. "This is my guild." _And you're a human too_. She thought silently.

The old woman glared, and snapped "Get out!"

Lucy scrambled off the bed and out of the room, though poking her head in one last time before leaving. "Thank you Porlyusica-san!" She couldn't didn't really know what she was thanking the old mage for, only that she felt she needed to.

The lady merely huffed, and turned away. "Thank Wendy."

Lucy blinked. _Of course! Wendy!_ She remembered her sitting by the bed, healing her.

_So I **was** injured_... She thought in wonder.

She quickly left the room, trying to recall the past few events. By now, it was clear that she had lost some of her memory, but before the fight between Loke and Natsu, she had no idea what had happpened.

..._Did I really tell Natsu I loved him?_ A blush crept up her cheeks, as she recalled her Spirit's words. No way.

_And I was... dying? _Dying from what?

_...I'll just ask Loke later._ She finally decided. Pretty soon, she stumbled down the stairs, only to find a sleeping, rather peaceful-looking Wendy. The small girl was curled up on the seat, an empty cup beside her.

Lucy knelt down by the girl's form and whispered "Thank you, Wendy." She softly kissed the girl on the cheek, and smiled.

The blonde suddenly shot up, remembering something else.

Natsu's angry and hurt expression flashed in her mind, as she remembered him yelling_ "You're the reason I was sad in the first place!"_

Oh dear God, why did she not remember this sooner? She quickly hurried out the door, rushing toward the direction of Natsu's house.

* * *

"Hey Mira, could you get me a cup a' iron?"

The white-haired girl beamed at him. "Sure thing!" She quickly rushed away to get his order, and Gajeel rested his face on his hand. Ever since they got back with Bunny Girl, Shrimp reading nonstop. He was _itching_ to back to that cave again, but there wouldn't be much point since he could barely read English, forget the runes.

"Here ya' go!" She handed him large cup with various metal articles inside, and Gajeel paid for the meal, then strolled over to where Levy was reading. He slammed the cup down on the table, and sat. The girl didn't acknowledge him, still engrossed in her books, and he snorted. "Hey Shrimp, can we go back yet?"

Without looking up, she said "I already told you no! I wanna wait for Lu-chan to get better first."

He waved his hand dismissively. "Bunny Girl's fine." As if to prove her point, the Celestial Spirit Mage dashed by the guild, blonde hair flying. "See? She's up and running."

Levy blinked in surprise, then scowled and whacked him in the head with the book. "Lu-chan's not a vehicle! Or a bunny!"

"Good thing she isn't. How the hell would Salamander ride her?"

Gajeel gave one of his weird laughs as her face flushed, and she shrieked "Gajeel!" She whacked him again. "That's not funny!"

"Ow." It didn't hurt in the slightest, and he made that pretty clear through his bored tone. "Whatever, can we just go now?"

She heaved a humongous sigh, one he didn't realize her small chest was capable of. He then burst out laughing, realizing what he just thought.

"Fine, we'll go." She glared. "And stop laughing!"

* * *

"Happy!" Natsu rushed into the room, dragging a ginormous fish behind him.

"Natsu!" The cat jumped up and tackled him, making him stumble. "You brought me a big fish!"

He grinned almost maniacally. "Yup! I hope it tastes good." He laughed as Happy's mouth watered at the thought of feasting on the creature. "I'm sorry I didn't visit you earlier. Forgive me?"

Happy vigousrisly nodded, then realization hit him and his eyes bugged out. "Natsu! I can't eat all that! What are we supposed to do with the rest?!"

His jaw dropped, and sported a similar reaction. "I don't know! Give it to Charle?"

"She hates fish!"

"Try anyway!"

The cat then curled up in the corner, facing the wall. "I'm scared..." Natsu sweat-dropped. _How did he get there so fast_? The Exceed then whirled his head, the sudden, freakish motion startling the Dragon Slayer. "Give it to Lucy!"

Happy sweat-dropped as Natsu leaned into the wall, his arm between his forehead and the supporting structure. "I don't know..." He muttered. Emotions swirled madly in his mind at the mere mention of her name. He was anguished that he couldn't protect her. Confused as to why she fought so hard for him when he yelled at her just minutes before. Happy she said she loved him. Hating himself for misunderstanding her smile. Fearing the possible putcome if he gave her the fish. Confused as to why he was so sad when he felt like he couldn't hold her. Confused as to why she smelled so good to him. Confused with his own thoughts. Confused why he felt warmer than usual. Overall, just confused about everything.

"Natsu!" He exclaimed in surprise, throwing his paws in the air. He then began scrambling around the room back in forth, shrieking in panic "Natsu's being weird! He's thinking! He likes Lucy!"

Natsu snapped his head around to glare at his best friend. "Sh-shut up Happy!"

"Natsu's thinking! The world's gonna end!" Natsu strode over and began pulling at his cheeks, much like Lucy had the other day without all the threats. "Lucy does that too." The cat mumbled. Natsu dropped him in surprise, and completely turned off.

The blue cat hesitantly trodded over to his friend, and waved his paws in his face. "Natsu...?"

No response.

"Natsuuuuuu...?"

"A-aye..." He stuttered, still shell-shocked.

"Why does my house smell like fish?!" Porlyusica burst into the room, her nostrils flared in anger.

Natsu and Happy looked at each other, and then the old woman. "You can have it!" They said in sync.

Porlyusica's eyebrow twitched, and a vein popped on her forehead. "I don't want it!" She screamed, hurling them out the door with the fish closely behind.

"I hate humans!" She shouted before slamming the door, not bothering to help the two mages squashed flat under the large creature.

* * *

"Natsu?..." The blonde peered into her partner's house, then did a double take as she saw the mess. Did she not clean this place a few weeks ago?

_No, wait_... She remembered. _It was 7 years_...

She sighed, and unconsciously began picking up some of the articles, gathering them up in her arms. She then shrieked, and dropped all the items on the floor. "What the hell am I doing?!" She screamed at no one. Lucy sighed again, and submitted to her strange cleaning desires. There wasn't nearly as much mess when she first cleaned it though, so it only took her about an hour.

Lucy sat on the cot and relaxed a little, slightly tired out from the work. She chuckled as she found herself wondering where Natsu was- this was no different than 7 years ago. Just for old times sake, she sat and waited for him to come home, the cleaning having numbed out her urgent need to apologize to him.

* * *

In the end, Happy and Natsu decided to bring the fish to the guild, much to Mira's delight. Natsu watched with a smile on his face as the young woman immediately rushed to the kitchen to prepare some fish stew, beaming as always.

"...Are we sleeping at Lucy's today Natsu?" Happy asked his friend.

Natsu froze. "D-do you really want to?"

Happy gave a sly grin, then nodded. He watched as Natsu furrowed his eyebrow, then grin in return. "Sure!"

_I need to apologize anyway_. He thought. "You wanna go now?"

Happy perked up. "Aye!"

Mira walked out of the kitchen carry a large pot, and amusedly watched as Natsu and Happy raced out the door.

She cocked her head. _Did Natsu just stutter?_ She shook her head and chuckled to herself, ignoring the stares she got from a few of her guildmates.

_I wonder what happened between them..._

* * *

After waiting for another 2 hours, Lucy decided she had waited long enough, and left Natsu's house. As she passed the small section of the room where Natsu kept his most precious belongings, she smiled. Most of the things were a little worn out after 7 years, but they were still in unbelievably good condition. Most people would say it was magic, but Lucy knew that Natsu was just good at taking care of things that were important to him.

Closing the door behind her, she set of for her house, already knowing what to expect.

* * *

Natsu slumped against the edge of Lucy's bed, extremely bored from waiting.

It's been so long... He inwardly groaned. What the heck...

His eyes widened, and he shot up as Lucy walked into her room. Her eyes widened as well, as though she had suddenly remembered something.

"Natsu-"

"Lucy-"

"I'm sorry!" They both blurted at the same time.

After a slight pause, they both yelled at each other "What are you sorry for!"

"I'm sorry for making you sad!" Lucy shouted.

"I'm sorry for being such a dumbass!" He shouted back.

"I'm sorry for hurting you!"

"I'm sorry I couldn't protect you!"

Lucy began to sob, and Natsu backed away slightly, hands in the air, tripping and ended up sitting on the bed. "I-I'm sorry Luce... Didn't mean to make you cry..."

"You idiot!" She screamed. Natsu watched in surprise as she threw herself at him, knocking him over flat on his back, and sobbed into his chest.

He silently stared at her for a few moments, then put his arms around her and pulled her closer, smiling into her hair. "I know."

Happy watched from the doorway, and thought_ They liiiiiiike each other_. Not wanting to disturb his best friend, he slowly backed away, capturing the image in his mind should Mira ever want it.

Lucy cried for a few more moments, then slowly looked at her partner in the face, now very much aware that she was on top of him. On a bed.

"I-I'm sorry!" She shrieked, scrambling to get off him.

In her haste, her elbow brushed his stomach, and he choked. "I-It's fine."

He got up, and met Lucy's now tear-free stare. "Did you just laugh?" She asked. Only it wasn't much of a question.

"No!" He protested, trying to denying it. He then chuckled as Lucy experimentally poked him in the stomach, contradicting himself.

He watched in horror as she grinned, and suddenly lunged.

As always, when she attacked, him Lucy was unbelieavably fast. He tried to get away, only managing to bury himself deeper into the bed in the process. She tickled him relentlessly, and Natsu gasped through tears "Lucy- please- stop!"

"Never! It's payback!" She announced, still tickling him.

Natsu waited in agony for an opening between her pokes, and took it when he first saw it. He quickly flipped himself over so he was over Lucy, pinned her down with his legs, and started tickling her back. Fortunately for him, the blonde was no less ticklish than he was. And best of all, her midriff was exposed.

Happy tried to cover his ears as he sat in the living room, the sound of maniacal laughter filling his head. He was curious, but more so afraid of what he'd see. He heard a loud screech from Lucy, and shuddered. Yup, definitely afraid.

Getting rather tired of the noise, he left the house and went to Lisanna's, eager to talk to his foster mother after so long.

* * *

Gajeel grinned as he stood at the mouth of the cave. After much persuasion and occasional... 'threats,' Shrimp had finally agreed to bring him back here today. He glanced over at the small girl, who's face was still unbelievably red. "Ya' doin' okay Shrimp?"

She scowled at him, a look he rather liked on her usually bubbly face. "Sh-shut up! And call me Levy!"

He snorted. "Fine then... 'Levy.'" The sound felt strange on his tongue, but not bad. Not bad at all. He stomped into the cave, eager to check out the room they had discovered back then.

"Damned Dragon Slayer..." Levy muttered. "Don't gotta say my name like it's a disease..."

"Not all diseases are bad." He said nonchalantly.

She glared. "You have a screwed up way of flirting."

Gajeel's jaw dropped. "Me?! Flirt?!"

Instead of replying, she stuck her tongue out, much to his annoyance. She strode past him, and Gajeel grudgingly followed.

Seeing it was rather dark, Levy wrote out 'light' in the air, and a small, bright glow filled the small space. Gajeel squinted against the sudden light, and grumbled "Coulda warned me."

Even behind her, he could tell that the girl didn't give a damn.

As they entered the room for the first time, Gajeel did a double take. The room was _way_ bigger than the part on the outside. Though it still wasn't quite big enough to fit an actual dragon, it was still a lot bigger than one would guess from the outside. He guessed that the trees his most of it.

Levy flared up her little light to give her a good view of the room, and she gasped in awe. Gajeel snorted. If it looked big to him, he could only guess how the room seemed to her.

Levy slowly walked over to where a small tombstone stood, and crouched down, bringing her light closer to the letters. Gajeel stood next to her, not bothering to kneel. "So what's it say?"

"'Here lies Lucille Heartfilia.'" She read aloud. "May 29th, X421 - January 9th, X467."

"May she protect the Gateway between Dragons and Humanity." Levy's eyes widened, and Gajeel stumbled to the ground with her.

Their minds were one, as they thought frantically _There exists... something like that? _

* * *

**The more I write this, the more I'm convinced that I need to up the rating... **

**I recently found out that I've been spelling Charle's name wrong, so I'll go back and change that when I feel like it. =9 **

**As for the story, I feel like this is becoming more of a romance thing. :/ I hope the last part changed that. :) (Please understand that I make things up as the story progresses. I _do_ think very much about it when I'm not writing, but only for the next chapter.)**

**And just to make things clear, Lucy forgot only the part about the fight. Before that, and after she's in the emergency room, she remembers quite clearly. **

**And I am most definitely _not_ gonna make Lisanna the bad character. :/ It always makes uncomfortable when she is, because I could tell from the very first time she was mentioned that she would be an unbelievably sweet girl. So yeah, she will stick to her 'canon' personality. (Forgive me if I'm wrong, but I believe that's the original series?)**

**I'm also thinking this will be a very long story. Many chapters ahead.**

**And I'm thinking about getting a beta reader. Not sure if I should though.**

**So yeah, hope you liked this chapter, please feel very free to review! :D**


	14. Chapter 13: A Brand New Adventure!

**Hello hello everybody! :D**** I'm here with another chapter ^.^**

**A quick word about the bonus chapter, "A Day With Metalicana." I know I promised to write you one every 25 reviews, but I'm struggling with it. I did manage to type it out, but it's half-assed and you guys deserve so much better. Please wait a little longer until I improve it (I _know_ I can!), it will be so much better than posting it now. Maybe even worth waiting for. :)**

**This one was a little tricky to write. Took a lot of brainstorming. So happy reading!**

* * *

"The Gateway between Dragons and Humanity..." Levy muttered in disbelief. She then turned to an equally surprised Gajeel, a determined look in her eyes. "We have to find it."

The Iron Dragon Slayer slowly nodded, and said "But how?"

The girl got up and brushed off her clothes. "I guess the best way to start is to search the room." She offered her hand, and Gajeel reluctantly took it, though he still used his own effort to stand. "Here, you should take this."

Gajeel flinched as she threw him a bright light, but managed to catch it. "The hell? You can do that?" He asked, turning over the warm, ball of light in his hands.

She shrugged. "All I did was change its properties a little."

She rolled her eyes as Gajeel shot her a confused look, and then began exploring the room. "There has to be _something_..." She mumbled, holding her light close to the walls.

Gajeel went to the opposite side, and began working towards Levy. As his light wasn't as bright as the Script Mage's, he brushed the walls with his fingers as well to avoid missing anything. His eyes widened slightly as he felt unusually smooth indentations, short and small, but seem to continue in a line. "Hey Shrimp! I think I found something!" He called out.

She immediately rushed over, not even bothering to correct him. "What?"

Gajeel moved his light over the wall, but it's small size made it hard to see anything clearly. "I can't tell."

"Take a step back and close your eyes. Maybe turn away." She instructed.

He raised an eyebrow, though he doubted she could see it, but did as she asked, choosing to cover his eyes.

"Solid Script: Light." Levy commanded.

_How is that any different from before?_... Gajeel wondered, peeking through his fingers. He instantly regretted it, however, as a huge, blinding light surfaced from the girl's fingertips. His eyes stung as if someone had drowned them in saltwater, and sprung tears. He stumbled backwards, rubbing at his face and adjusting to the sudden brightness.

After finally getting somewhat used to the light, which took a while, he looked again to see Levy holding a massive ball of light over her head, white and blinding. The light lit up the entire wall, and creeped out towards the middle of the ceiling as well.

"I map..." He said in awe. The indentations he felt before were a route, and things he mistook for natural curves and bumps were the landscaping. It was very detailed, and was surprisingly accurate for being so old. All the towns he were familiar with seemed to be in the right place, with the right distance between them, also with the right names. Forests were intricately carved into the stone, and rivers ran through it like cracks.

"...Yeah..." Levy gasped.

Gajeel frowned. "Don't work too hard Shrimp."

"My name... is Levy..." She huffed tiredly. Her breathing has steadied somewhat, but Gajeel could smell traces of sweat in the air.

"Okay, okay, Levy. Just relax a bit, will ya'?" Though he didn't say it outright, Levy could tell he was worried.

She smiled, and said "I'll be fine... in a little while." He watched as she threw the light down in front of her, and rushed forwards as she stumbled backwards.

"Shrimp?!" Her eyes were cloudy and distant.

She shook her head, and staggered back to her feet. "It's fine... I was just too close to the light, is all... My vision is a little messed up."

"Take a break then!" He half pleaded.

She shook her head again. "I wanna finish this... before I run out of magic power..." The light had taken up more energy than she thought it would. At most, she had only 30 minutes.

She pulled out a pad and began copying down the map, working her way down. She let out a little irritable growl, for in order to see the top she had to crane her neck all the up. It was rather cumbersome since she had to keep looking at the wall, then back to her paper.

Suddenly, she felt strong arms lift her, and her view of the top neared. "Gajeel?" She asked. He had put her on his right shoulder, so his cheek nestled against her thigh, and his hands holding her legs steady.

"Just hurry up and write that down Shrimp." He muttered, slightly embarrassed.

She smiled, but did as he asked, working with more vigor than she had previously. Gajeel stood silently, focusing on keeping the small girl from toppling off his shoulder. Every few minutes, she threatened to lose balance, but he gripped her legs tightly to keep her from falling.

Finally, the girl said weakly "I'm... fin... ished..." She fell forward, and Gajeel caught her in his arms. The pad and the pen clattered to the floor, and he carefully reached over to pick them up, then pushed it into Levy's hands. She flashed him one last grateful smile, then passed out, completely drained. The light soon flickered away afterwards, leaving Gajeel to navigate the cave on his own.

Holding the Script Mage in his arms, he carefully walked out of the room, and out of the cave.

* * *

A knock sounded at the door, and Lisanna called "Coming!"

The white-haired teen opened the door, surprised to see Happy standing in front of her. "Happy?"

"Lisanna!" The blue, furry animal jumped at her, squeezing her legs. She affectionately reached down to pick him up, and said "Hi Happy! Why are you here?" She then peered out the door, and asked "Is Natsu with you?"

Happy shook his head, and Lisanna was surprised to see him trembling. "He's at Lucy's house..." He whimpered.

The Takeover Mage blinked, surprised by his dismayed tone, but carried him inside and tried to reassure him. No matter what happened between Lucy and Natsu, she would always act as Happy's mother figure.

She placed him in a seat near the fireplace, across from Elfman who sat flipping through a book.

Happy stared at the man in disbelief, who glanced at the gaping cat and muttered "Reading is Man."

"A-aye..."

"So how've you been Happy? You guys never visit anymore." She pouted teasingly.

Happy gawked as the sudden realization hit him. Lisanna sweat-dropped.

"I'm sorry!" The cat wailed, throwing himself on Lisanna's person.

"It's okay Happy! Really!" She shrieked frantically. Oh dear Lord, she wanted to make him feel _better_, not worse!

"I'll come and visit you lots from now on! And I'll bring a lot of fish!"

"It's fine!"

"Is someone here Lisanna?" Mirajane peered into the living room, ladle in hand and sporting an apron. Her hair was tied up, a look Happy hadn't seen in a while. Suddenly recalling her past, demonic self, he shuddered. "Oh! Hello Happy! What are you doing here?"

Happy sniffed. "Lucy and Natsu are doing scary things in Lucy's room."

Three pairs of eyes widened. Mira dropped her ladle, and Elfman's book closed as his fingers loosened.

"WHAT?!" Mirajane and Lisanna shrieked.

"What were they doing? Did you see?" The oldest asked hurriedly.

Happy smirked. "Will you-"

"Don't screw with me Happy." Mirajane growled. He panicked, and Lisanna twitched nervously.

"They were screaming at each other and Lucy started crying and Natsu fell on the bed and Lucy jumped on him and she was crying and called him an idiot and they started hugging each other." He said hurriedly, not wanting to invoke her wrath. Since when did she turn scary again?

The two girls started shrieking in delight, clasping each other's a hands and jumping up and down, yelling incomprehensible words.

"And?!" The two shouted in unison.

"I don't know. I left." He stated, rather freaked out as the two women were practically in his face. He paused, then added "But there was a lot of laughing. And yelling."

Mira sighed, and straightened up. "Aw... I wanted to know what happened next."

"B-big sister... You don't think they..." Lisanna stuttered nervously. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Elfman fall on his side with a thud, a horrified expression in his face.

"S-so Man..." Elfman choked.

Mira stooped down to pick up her ladle, and waved it at Lisanna dismissively. "No no no... It's too early for them. _Way_ too early. And even though they're weird, they're not weird enough to be laughing while doing 'that'."

"What's 'that'?" Happy asked curiously.

"Nothing!" The two shouted. The last thing they wanted was to explain 'it' to a cat.

"Oh! I know!" Mira rushed to the other room, and came back with a large camera in her hands. "Here, I have a job for you Happy." She said, handing him the camera. "I'll give you a ton of fish, just do this for me, 'kay?"

_She's bipolar_. "Okay." The cat said, hooking the camera over his neck. "Do what?"

"Natsu is still at Lucy's right?" He nodded. "Just use that to take a bunch of pictures of them for me. But try not to let them notice you."

He nodded again, but this time grinning.

"Ooh, you're smart big sister." Lisanna said snickering.

"They're evil." Elfman muttered, then reared back and mumbled apologies as they shot death glares.

"Oh wait... It's too late now..." Mira said regretfully, glancing out the window. The sun had already set. If she was gonna get pictures, she wanted them nice and clear. She leaned down to the cat, and asked brightly "Why don't you stay with us for the night and go tomorrow morning? I'm making that fish stew for dinner."

His mouth watered, and he eagerly agreed.

The four of them talked and laughed during the hearty dinner, half the conversation going to Lisanna's time in Edolas, and the other to Natsu. Happy knew many things about his friend that he didn't mind sharing, and the others eagerly listened.

That night, he slept with Lisanna, something he hadn't done for many, many years. He regretted not talking to Lisanna more after she came back, and savored the time with his foster mother, basking in the same warmth he felt since he was inside his egg.

* * *

_Where the heck am I supposed to bring her?_... Gajeel thought to himself, looking around town. It was pretty dark out, and the girl in his arms was getting heavier by the second. But he was quite relieved to see that she was merely sleeping. All signs of her previous fatigue were wiped off her face during the past few hours.

He didn't think she needed treatment, but still wanted someone to keep an eye on her. He thought of bringing her to the guild's infirmary, but quickly dismissed it. It would be too embarrassing.

_Oh, that's right! Bunny Girl could watch after her!_ From what he had seen, the two were pretty good friends. Surely there wasn't anything wrong with dropping Levy off at her house.

He instinctively gave one of his strange laughs, and started walking towards her house. At first he wasn't sure where to go, but he managed to pick up her scent and follow it.

He soon arrived, and tried to knock on the door, but doing it while holding Levy was too annoying. Instead, he kicked it open with a free foot, and jerked back at the sudden noise. Were they having a party in there? He then cringed as he heard Lucy shriek, but steeled himself and walked in.

After the laughter, the next thing he noticed was the scent. It had Lucy's, to be sure, but Salamander's mixed in as well, with just a little touch of the blue cat.

_It's pretty late_... He thought, scanning the deserted room. _Do they camp here often? _

He dropped Levy off at the sofa, threw the pad of paper and the pen on the table, and closed the open window near her. Couldn't let her get cold.

_Ah, maybe I should warn Bunny Girl_... For her to keep an eye on Levy, she had to know she was there.

_What the hell... They're still laughing?_ He slowly made his way to the source of the laughter, her room.

The door was slightly ajar, and he peered in, trying to keep silent. He had to stifle a scream, however, as he caught a glimpse of a very familiar figure over another familiar figure on the bed. He quickly jerked away from the door, and pressed himself against the wall, sweating.

_Oh hell no_... He thought to himself. _Salamander is not_...

_But that's kind of weird_. He thought, the small amount of logic he had kicking in. Not like he had any experience in the matter, but were people supposed to be laughing like that?

He shook his head, and left the apartment, shooting Levy once last glance before leaving. He had a hell of a lot to think about. Hopefully, nothing bad would happen to Shrimp during the night.

* * *

_"There will be a dragon." Blank eyes stared into hers, locking her in place._

_No... I don't wanna hear this again... _

_The girl paid no attention, and continued. "It will take him away. Two others will be with him. Only one will survive."_

_No! Stop!_

_"And it won't be him."_

_"He will die."_

"No..." She sobbed aloud, gripping the sheets.

"Lucy?..."

Her eyes blearily opened, and through tears she saw Natsu, reaching for her. "What's wrong?"

She grabbed his hand, and choked "You're not leaving right? You won't go anywhere?"

_You won't die on me?_

He shook his head. "Never." He said solemnly. In the dark, she could see question in his eyes. Worry, even.

But all she did was tighten her grip on his hand, and breathed "Thank goodness..."

He smiled, and used his other hand to rub the tears off her face, watching as she slowly went back to sleep.

_...What was that about_?... She looked so scared, so unsettled. And it worried him. Whatever happened was bad enough to give her nightmares. What if she was in danger?

At the sudden thought, he immediately thought of shaking her awake to ask, but he had a feeling it would only do more harm then good.

_...I'll ask in the morning_. He decided. For now, for the rest of the night, she was safe.

No... For the rest of her life, she would be safe. He would make sure of that.

* * *

The next morning, they all got up early (with the exception of Elfman) and the two girls waved good bye as the cat zoomed off into the distance, smirking the whole while.

Lisanna turned to Mirajane. "So what will you do with them?"

The older girl on flashed a smile, her eyes glittering. "You'll see."

_Yay! Fish! Lots of fish!_ The cat hummed happily as he zipped through the air, camera on his neck. A bunch of fish! And all he had to do was take pictures.

He reached the window and peered in, then giggled. They looked so cute! He lifted the camera and pounded on the button, getting dozens of pictures. Being so engrossed in it, however, he didn't notice Natsu slowly turning to face him until one of the pictures showed the Dragon Slayer looking almost directly at him.

He panicked, but when he saw Natsu squinting, he used the chance to escape, disappearing in a flash of blue.

_...The hell was that?_ Natsu thought. Whatever, at least that annoying sound stopped now. He squeezed her hand, then shifted it so his fingers laced with hers. He marveled how perfectly it fit so perfectly in his own.

_I still didn't tell her_... He remembered, looking at her face. Back then, he wanted to tell her right away, but now, he just wasn't so sure. Maybe it changed when he failed to protect her, or when she admitted she loved him. He still couldn't believe that happened, and the fact that Lucy didn't seem to act any different or mention it at all didn't help prove that it changed anything between them. That fierce protective sense he had for her, his playfulness and ease around the girl, his love for her smile, his hate for her tears, were they really all so different from his other guildmates?

He turned away, his face feeling hot_. Nope, I can't._

His eyes widened slightly as she suddenly inched closer, still asleep. Her fingernail scraped his chest, and Natsu jerked back from the sudden contact, involuntarily tumbling off the bed and taking Lucy with him.

He groaned out of disbelief, the carpet muffling the sound. The slight touch from her fingers pretty caused him to spaz out. He knew he was ticklish, but that was just crazy.

He grumbled as he realized Lucy was sprawled across his back, their hands still joined and his arm bent backwards awkwardly.

"What the hell Natsu?! I was sleeping!" She grouched.

"You're the one that made me fall off the bed." He muttered.

"I barely touched you!"

"I'm sensitive."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh please."

She got up and pulled him to his feet, stumbling backwards from the weight. "Kh. You're heavy."

"Ah, who cares." He yawned, stretching. "I call bathroom first."

"It's my bathroom!" She exclaimed.

He trudged over and slammed the door, then peered at himself in the mirror. He was relieved to find that though he did look rather weary, it didn't show _too_ much. After Lucy woke him up, his sleep became troubled. Actually, he didn't think he fell asleep at all, though it was hard to tell since all he saw throughout the night was total darkness.

And he still had to ask why she was crying.

He quickly tried to clean himself up, using the spare toothbrush he kept in her bathroom, and using the coldest water to wash. He grinned at himself in the mirror, thinking he looked at least presentable, then shoved the door of the bathroom open, harder than he meant to. He expected a slam, but got something else entirely.

"Kya!"

His eyes widened, and he slowly peeled the door away from the wall. As he had guessed, but definitely not hoped, Lucy was right there, her arms up and her eyes spinning. A knot was forming on her forehead, and she slumped down. He glanced at the door, a rather ominous imprint of her figure stamped in the wood.

"LUCY! Lucy are you okay?!" Oh Mavis, he didn't kill her right?

"Idiot..." She growled. A vein popped on her forehead.

He took a step back, hands in the air. "Um..."

"LUCY KICK!"

* * *

"Ah, Happy!" Mirajane looked up from the dishes to see the cat fly in, clutching the camera. "Did you get them?"

She brightened up even more when he nodded, and carefully set down the dishes before leaning her elbows on the counter. She held out her hand for the camera, and he happily obliged. Happy made himself comfortable on the counter while Mira called over Lisanna.

When the other Strauss female rushed over, she immediately starting flipping through the photos. Regretting that she hadn't deleted the masses of pictures she stored in there, she impatiently pressed the button at lightning fast speeds, so fast she had almost missed the first NaLu picture.

"They're so cute!" Lisanna shrieked. Lucy and Natsu were sleeping soundly on her bed, Natsu holding her hand. Both looked quite peaceful. Happy, even.

"I know!" Mirajane crowed. She quickly started flipping through the pictures again, but sighed. They were all pretty much almost the same thing, with the exception of Natsu slowly turning to face the camera. "Happy! I thought I told you not to let them see you!"

"I don't think he did. The sun hit his eye, and I flew away after that."

Mira sighed in relief. He better not have seen it. It would ruin all the fun if he did.

She beamed at the Exceed. "Great job Happy! Free fish on the house for the next month!"

He cheered, and flew around the guild in circles.

"So what are you doing with them again?..." Lisanna asked hopefully.

She put a finger to her lips, and winked. "Wait 'til one of them comes in first."

"Oh! Natsu!" Lisanna called.

"Hi Lisanna!" He replied, smiling. The two girls were barely able to contain themselves as he walked over. As he neared though, they noticed that he was drenched, but quickly drying.

"Um... Why are you wet?" Lisanna asked timidly.

"Oh, this." He bunched up his shirt. "Lucy kicked me into the river."

Mirajane snorted. "Why?"

"I accidentally squished her between the door and the wall."

...

"How could you." They both stated.

"It was an accident!"

"Anyway Natsu, what were you doing with Lucy last night?" Mirajane asked, leaning in close.

"Huh? I dunno... tickling her?" What did they want him to say?

Mirajane turned the camera so the screen faced him. He peered in closer, than gave a yell. "Hey!"

They burst out laughing, and Natsu's face flushed. "Why do you have that?!"

"I've got my sources." She smirked.

"HAPPY! Imma kill you!" He roared, then lunged at the cat.

"It wasn't me!" Happy protested, flying out of his reach.

"The camera smells like you!"

"Mirajane was showing me the pictures!"

The two chased each other around the guild, screaming gibberish at each other the whole way. At one point, startling Mirajane, Happy flew behind the counter, with Natsu quickly following. She dropped the camera, which clattered to the floor and made an ominous, cracking sound. Happy flew back out, and Natsu hopped over the counter and landed right on the camera, the mechanism crushing itself beneath his feet.

"Natsu..." Mirajane growled.

"Eh?"

"I paid for that!" She screeched, and flung her arms skyward, uprooting a large chunk of the counter. It crashed to the ground, leaving a large gap in the bar.

_S-scary_... He thought.

_Should I run?_ He let out a squeak as Mira whipped out a couple knives, and screamed "Yeah! Definitely!"

"You are _so _not getting away!" She seethed, and chased after him.

* * *

_That's one awful way to wake a girl up_... _Pull her off the bed_. She thought grumbling.

And she was totally sore. Her stomach and throat hurt from laughing so much. It was fun, but seriously not worth it.

She stretched, and walked herself out to the living room. Her eyes bugged as she saw someone sleeping on her couch.

"Levy?!" She shrieked. When did she get here?

The girl muttered and turned away from the blonde, and that's when Lucy noticed the pad of paper on the table.

She picked it up, and flipped through the pages. "It's a map..." She whispered.

Thankfully, Levy had numbered the pages, so she carefully tore them out and arranged them on the table, surprised by how large it was.

Where did she find this? She wondered, studying the route that ran through the map. It wasn't very long, and led into the mountains.

"Talon's Peak..." She jumped as Levy suddenly yawned. She hadn't even noticed her waking up.

"Morning Lu-chan~" She chirped, stretching out her arms. "Why am I at your house?"

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "I dunno. You were there when I woke up."

"Gajeel must have brought me here..." She murmured. Levy then glanced over at the map, and beamed. "Look Lu-chan! I found that at the cave!"

Her eyes widened. "For real?!"

Levy nodded. "Yup! It was behind the carvings, but protected by runes. You probably couldn't have opened it."

"I could always get Natsu to clobber it."

"Nope." Levy grinned. "Gajeel tried that. Couldn't even scratch it."

"So you?..." Lucy imagined Levy triumphantly standing over rubble with a shock Iron Dragon Slayer by her side, and laughed. "I totally wished I could have seen his face."

"It was priceless!" She crowed. "Anyway, I found a grave in there, for Lucille Heartfilia. Is she related to you?"

Lucy gaped. "Y-yeah... She was one of my earliest ancestors. I read in one of our books that she went missing after getting married off to some prince, and no one ever saw her again." Her eyes turned to saucers. "Then that story was..."

"I think so too. She wrote that story, possibly with another dragon."

_That explains that weird connection I felt with the carvings before... But still..._

"My family... met a dragon?" She whispered in disbelief. "That's crazy..."

Levy tapped her chin with her finger. "It is, but it could be true. I mean, it makes sense." She paused, then looked at the blonde thoughtfully. "But I'm wondering... How did your line continue? Didn't she go missing?"

Lucy furrowed her eyebrow as she tried to remember. "They had another child."

"And the prince didn't do anything?"

She shook her head. "He lost control of his kingdom. All the people rebelled against him. After that, the king of Lucille's kingdom took control."

Levy frowned. "But I remember you told us you were an heiress, not a... princess."

"My grandmother ran away from her kingdom." She stated.

"Ah, I see." She sighed. "Your family is complicated."

She smiled. "I guess so." She then turned back to the map. "So what is this for?"

"Well, on her grave, it said 'May she watch over the Gateway between Dragons and Humanity.' I'm thinking- hoping, that the map will lead us there. To that 'Gateway.'"

"To dragons..." Lucy breathed.

_But that girl... She said a dragon will take him away._ She thought uneasily.

_But it might not be Natsu_. The more reasonable part of her said. _And it's not like I can keep this from him._ He had been searching his entire life for any sign of the dragons. That's how she met him.

_No... I can't not tell him..._ Even so, she had a bad feeling about all of this. It hung over her like a cloud, a constant nagging in the back of her mind.

"Is something the matter Lu-chan?" Levy asked, interrupting her thoughts.

"No... no, nothing."

The Script Mage shot her a worried look, but didn't want to pry. Instead, she simply said "Let's go tell the others!"

Lucy gave a half-hearted smile and said "Yeah."

* * *

Makarov looked around the guild, surveying the wreck for the second time that month. The man sighed, and growled "Who did it this time?"

Everyone pointed to Natsu and Mirajane, Natsu struggling to remove himself from the wall and Mirajane back at the dismantled counter, smiling as usual.

"Hello Master! Me and Natsu got in a little fight, but it's okay now!"

"You nearly killed me!" Natsu shouted.

"Be a good boy and shut up~." Mirajane giggled, whipping a glass pitcher at him while still smiling at the master.

"O-oh... That's good to hear..." He murmured.

"...NO! What am I saying?!" He screamed, tugging at his hat. "You brats wrecked the guild again! We're going broke!"

"I'll go on a mission to make up for it." She promised.

Makarov's jaw hit the floor. First she gets into a fight, and now she wants to go on a mission?!

Lisanna and Elfman opened their mouths to say something, but Mirajane quickly said "On my own. I'm still uncomfortable with going all out in front of others."

"Oh... Okay big sister..." Lisanna said sadly, trying to hide it with a smile.

"Big Sister's being a Man again..." Elfman muttered.

Various indignant voices cried out "She's a woman!"

Just then, Lucy walked in the guild gripping a small stack of papers and Levy on her arm.

"Oh! Hi Lucy!" Natsu called, rubbing the spot where the pitcher hurt him.

Lucy smiled. "Hello Natsu!" She replied.

Levy turned to Gajeel, who was casually eating metal, and smirked. "Thank you for last night Gajeel!~"

He promptly spat out the snack as people whistled and cheered. "What the hell?! Don't say it like that!"

Mirajane sniffed loudly. "You didn't need even need my help..."

"Damn straight!" He yelled. "We didn't do anything!"

Mira whipped her head towards Levy, who was laughing her heart out. "What did you guys do?"

"He carried me to Lucy's house." She giggled. "That's all!"

Mira sighed, but the other guild members chuckled.

_Oh, I totally got my revenge!_ She thought wickedly.

Gajeel glared. "I'll kill ya' Shrimp."

But Levy had already bounced away, pulling Lucy to Natsu. She called over her shoulder "Erza! Wendy! Gajeel! Gray! You _have_ to see this!"

They all turned to look at each other, and walked over to the threesome, curiousity in their eyes.

Erza peered over Lucy's shoulder, and asked "What is this?"

"It's a map, to the 'Gateway between Dragons and Humanity.'" Levy announced. "Me and Gajeel found it last night."

"Ah, so that is what you two were doing." She nodded.

"WOAH! Does that mean I'll see Igneel again?" Natsu asked excitedly.

"Maybe." Lucy replied, a small smile curling at her lips. "But we have to make the trip first."

"Talon's Peak..." Gray muttered. Then turned to the rest of the group. "From the map, it looks like it's only three days from here."

Natsu's smile died. "Three days on a train?!" He screamed. From the corner of his eye, he saw Gajeel look away, slightly pale.

"Idiot." The Ice Mage scoffed, bopping him on the head. "Three days walking. There ain't no tracks that lead into mountains."

"Uh-huh!" He protested loudly, catching him in the chin. Gray scowled, and yanked back Natsu's chair, making him crash to the ground.

The two unconsciously moved their fight away from the table, and the others continued to discuss the map. "It looks like there's a town along the way though." Wendy commented.

Erza brightened up, and thrust her finger onto the map. "That town! It's well-known in many places for it's hot springs! And cake." She added quietly.

"Great! We can stop there when we reach it." Lucy said.

Levy scanned the map. "But that's the only one... After that, we'll have to camp out the rest of the nights."

"It's only three days." Gajeel snorted. "Shouldn't be a problem."

"Wait, you're going?" Erza asked.

"Yeah." Gajeel and Levy replied.

"We are the ones who found it." The Iron Dragon Slayer muttered.

Lucy began counting off her fingers. "So that's me, Erza, Levy, Gajeel..." She turned to Wendy, questions her with her eyes. When the girl nodded, she continued. "Wendy..."

"Gray! Are you coming as well?" Erza shouted.

The mon replied as best he could with Natsu's hand flattening his face. "Huh? I can't! Juvia asked me to go on a mission with her!"

"So that's it?"

"I'm going, obviously!" Natsu yelled, seconds before Gray sent him flying.

"Okay, and Natsu." She finished.

"Er..."

They all turned to see Romeo, who awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "Is it okay if I come? I've always wanted to go on a mission with Natsu-nii... And meet a dragon..."

The others looked at each other uncertainly, but Erza smiled, and said "Of course. That is fine, provided you follow our orders without complaint."

_This will be good experience for him_... She thought.

Romeo let out a relieved sigh, and said "I will! Thank you, Erza-nee!"

She nodded, then freaked out as Lucy suddenly asked "Jellal isn't coming too, is he?"

"N-no... I shouldn't think so..." She stuttered.

"Where has Jellal-san been anyway?" Wendy asked curiously. After he joined, he stayed in the guild for a few days, just taking to everyone. After a while though, he only came for a few minutes to take out a mission, then leave.

"We don't know." Lucy said, shaking her head. She has yet to find a difference between this world's Jellal and Mystogan, only discovering more ways they're similiar.

Much to Erza's relief, Levy suddenly blurt out "Hooray! We're going on an adventure!"

"Indeed. We shall meet in front of the train station tomorrow morning."

"HEY! I thought you said no train!" Natsu yelled in protest.

"It's only for an hour." Lucy assured him. "That's the last station on the route."

"Wendy! Use Troia on me?!" Natsu pleaded.

"I-I'm sorry Natsu-san... but it doesn't work on you anymore..."

"Dammit!" He shouted.

"Troia?..." Gajeel asked curiously.

"It cures motion sickness." Lucy explained.

Gajeel glanced at Wendy. "Can you use it on me?"

"Yes... I can..."

"No fair!"

* * *

Ultear heaved a sigh, and thrust a hand on her hip. "You can't be thinking about her _again_ Jellal."

He frowned. "I can't help it."

"Look, if you really wanna thank her, just do it."

Jellal blinked. "Well, I do want to thank her but... There's something else I want to ask."

"It's about time!" Meredy yelled gleefully, jumping on Ultear.

He looked at her in confusion. "Wait... What?"

The pink-haired girl huffed. "You're asking out Erza right?"

Jellal choked on his saliva. "No! I was thinking about Celestia!"

Ultear and Meredy exchanged glances, then said together "She's a little young for you."

He listened in horror as Meredy whispered "That's like seriously young. I mean..."

"I know." The raven-haired woman whispered back. "But you have no control over love..."

"I am not-! Gah, women." He groaned, slamming his head into the table.

"We're just joking!" Meredy singsonged. "We already know you love Erza!"

"You better be or- PLEASE STOP SAYING THAT!"

"Aw... How cute. Your face matches her hair!"

"You're awful. The both of you." He muttered into the wood as the two females cracked up.

"So what is it you wanted to ask Celestia?" Ultear asked.

"Well... Her origins. Where she came from, her family."

Meredy blinked. "That's kind of creepy." Jellal buried his face into his hand.

Ultear snorted, but asked "Why?"

Jellal looked them both in the eye, dead serious. "Because of her magic. It's similiar to mine."

* * *

**Yeah! An adventure! *throws sparkles into the air (Sorry if this is a little bit shorter than usual)**

**I know the story has been a bit dull lately, but I got some fun things coming up for the journey ^.^ **

**Celestia! Jellal! How are they related? X3 Teehee, you have to wait to find out~**

**Thanks for reading! I'll try and update soon!**

**Please feel very free to leave a review :)**


	15. Chapter 15: The First Day

**Oh my flipping god, so many things I needa say right now. But first off...**

**I FINALLY UPDATEDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD! 8D**

**Sorry, had to get that out. **

**So... I am REALLY sorry this came so late. I mean, I went from kind of weekly updates to... how long has it been? 4, 5 months? Either way, I'm so sorry. I truly am. Thanks so much to everyone who stuck with my bullcrap until now! I love you all :'D**

**These aren't very good excuses but.. (well, excuses are still excuses) my motivation for this DIED. I don't know how, when, or _why_, it just did. I've been wanting to update this so badly, but I something kept stopping me. It was so hard D: But I am really glad I did now, I hope you aren't too mad w But I'd understand if you were ^^;**

**Another reason- I recently experienced having a beta for the first time, and I realized... how incompetent as I writer I am. I saw so many flaws in my writing, and it just made me so reluctant to actually write. During the summer, I wrote very little. Well, I'd still like to improve, so please bear with my crappiness a little bit longer! I don't think you'll see much improvement from me on this story (it's hard to stick on long, complicated description when the story is already 90% dialogue) so, in my newest stories I'll be giving it my all!**

**News on the bonus chapter- I'm scrapping my old idea. No matter how hard I think, I can't think of a decent story for Gajeel's old days. (I swear, I really did try) Of course, you guys are more than welcome to suggest something, but I decided; the next bonus will be titled 'A Day With Crime Sorcier'. Just a silly, little chapter on how I think the outlawed guild completes their mission. It'll be up as soon as I can write it.**

**Also, the rewrite is being put off for now. I really just don't have the time anymore. With high school, I'm stuck to working on fanfics strictly on weekends. And I'd rather spend my time updating rather than rewriting. It may or may not come later, because I don't have much drive for it.**

**This is getting a bit long, so I'll just mention one more thing, more notes at the end of the chapter; I will never abandon this story. I _swear_ to finish it to the end. :D **

**Also, I didn't edit this very much, so forgive my mistakes.**

**Without my silly notes, this chapter is about 6,200 words long. Enjoy!**

* * *

As ordered by Erza, they all met up at the train station the next morning, Natsu and Gajeel equally glum. However, when Wendy kindly reminded Gajeel that she could cure him, the Iron Dragon Slayer perked up considerably while Natsu only slumped further into despair.

Lucy was in charge of the map, as Erza was unbelievably hopeless at reading them. The blonde scanned through it one more time, still puzzled by the accuracy of it. A few of these towns were established recently, only a few decades ago. If this was copied straight off the cave, wouldn't it be outdated?

"Hey, Levy." Lucy asked as they boarded the vehicle. "Did you change anything when you copied this?"

"Hm? No Lu-chan. I passed out right after I finished, so I didn't have a chance to change anything. Not that I would, it's already pretty accurate."

"Exactly. Isn't that kind of weird?"

The Script Mage's eyes flashed for a second with sudden realization, but she only shrugged. "Maybe it's a magic cave."

Lucy furrowed his eyebrows, then shrugged as well. So what if the map is accurate? She was totally overthinking this.

She took a seat near middle, Happy and Natsu taking the seat in front of her. Erza sat in the seat right behind Natsu, peeking over every now and then while trying to be discreet. Even though the train hadn't moved an inch yet, Natsu looked awfully sick.

She absentmindedly watched as Levy and Gajeel sat across from them, and Wendy, Charle and Romeo walked a little further to the seat behind Lucy, the Sky Dragon Slayer stopping for a second to cast Troia in Gajeel.

"I swear to Mavis, I never had motion sickness while I was in Phantom." Gajeel muttered.

Levy laughed, and said something Lucy didn't quite catch, making Gajeel snort and turn away.

"Oh, where's Lily?" The bluenette asked.

"Training in the mountains." Gajeel muttered in reply.

As soon as the train started moving, Natsu seemed to hurt twice as much. Erza stuck her neck over and asked "Natsu? Do you need me to ease your suffering?"

"N-no Erza... You'll probably end up killing me..." He groaned. Natsu then looked up at Lucy, a pleading look in his eyes.

Lucy sighed, and patted the seat next to her. "Get over here."

He smiled a little and trudged over, making himself comfortable and resting his head on Lucy's lap. The two sat in silence for a couple moments, listening to the train move. Then, Natsu asked "Lucy? Why were you crying last night?"

Lucy blinked. She always had a hard time remembering things that happened in the middle of the night. "I did?"

He did an awkward nod. "Yeah. You were crying and you asked me if I would ever leave or something, then when I told you I wouldn't you went back to sleep."

_Oh... That's right. I remember now._

She desperately wanted to tell him, so he could be more careful, but doing so would mean breaking that promise she made with the man she met at headquarters. And as a Celestial Spirit Mage, whose magic all depends on promises with their spirits, she could never bring herself to break one.

"I... can't tell you." She muttered quietly.

Of course Natsu picked something up anyway, and asked "Why not?"

She watched helplessly as a hurt expression crossed his face. "I already made a promise I wouldn't tell."

Natsu fell silent for a few moments. "You're not in danger right?"

She smiled sadly. She wasn't the one in danger, _he_ was. "No, I'm not."

_You don't know that for sure!_ The more logical part of her mind said.

_But..._ She thought back.

Natsu searched her face, but finding nothing to indicate she was lying, he turned his head back to face Happy.

The rest of the train ride went by relatively smoothly, and, of course, Natsu sprinting off while screaming relieved gibberish.

"So we have to walk from here to the next town..." Lucy muttered, surveying the map.

"Natsu! Wrong way" She shouted.

He skidded to a stop, then turned back around and dashed ahead of them, yelling "I knew that!"

They all laughed, and followed quickly.

Pretty soon, he calmed down and fell to a walk. Erza hummed as she went along, cake and hot springs on her mind. Charle and Happy were conversing, and though the female cat's words were stiff, Happy didn't let that shake him and continued to keep it up. Levy and Gajeel walked side-by-side, Levy with a cheerful expression on her face and Gajeel facing away from her. Romeo and Wendy hung a little behind them, caught in an amiable silence.

Lucy lead the group, with Natsu right next to her. He peered over to look at the map, but soon finding out he didn't understand it, looked away and focused on walking.

They all walked for about an hour, out of the small and quiet town until they hit a forest, at which Lucy chirped "Almost there! We just have to get through this."

"How long will it take us?" Erza asked.

"At most, 4 hours." She replied.

"4 hours?!" Levy exclaimed. "Lu-chan, that is not 'almost there!'"

The blonde looked at her sheepishly. "Guess not. But 4 hours isn't that long, is it?"

"Whatever, we're wasting time here." Gajeel muttered crossly.

Lucy sighed, and started walking again.

The forest was strangely lush, with moist plants and miniature clumps of fungi wherever they looked. The trees towered high above them, dripping water upon their heads every now and then.

Erza grumbled as the liquid repeatedly wet her hair, and requipped a shield to keep it at bay, holding it above her head.

Out of the blue, a bird cried shrilly in the distance, startling the nine of them. They all stopped to look at their surroundings, checking for any signs of life before moving on. Heart beats quickened.

"Um... Natsu, can you tell us if you smell anything weird?" Lucy asked.

He took an experimental sniff at the air, then frowned. "I can't smell anything."

She stared. "As in, nothing dangerous or just plain nothing?"

"Nothing." He repeated. "I don't know, I think all the plants screwed up my senses." His nose felt stuffy, as if clouds of moisture blocked them. It was harder to breathe.

"You too Gajeel? Wendy?" She asked, turning.

They both checked, then shook their heads. Nope.

Suddenly, various cries sounded from throughout the forest, as if echoing the first. They froze, waiting for something to happen, when Erza suddenly shouted "Duck!"

They immediately obeyed, crouching low to the ground as objects whistled over their heads. Erza chose to stay standing, blocking whatever she could with her shield, quickly summoning a second one to hold with her other hand.

One of the objects bounced off the shield and rolled to a stop near Lucy, enough so she could see it without raising her head. It was a strange nut, a bright shade of green covered in thorns. Not recognizing it, she turned to Levy and shouted "Levy! What is this?!"

The blue-haired girl glanced at the nut, and replied "Spiny fruits! They come from a certain plant that shoots them out at the call of a bird! But-" She shrieked as one of the projectiles narrowly missed her face. "They're not supposed to exist anymore! Scientists haven't seen one for years!"

"Wha?..." Well, they certainly exist now.

"Leave it to Shrimp to know whether or not a nut is extinct." Gajeel muttered.

"Didn't I just say it was a fruit?!"

"Get up! Something's coming!" Erza shouted, still deflecting the fruits.

Immense rustling shook the bushes and trees, and they looked in horror to see a large group of Vulcans advancing. The fruits had slowed considerably, now shooting out a couple at random intervals.

They were a different color from what Lucy was used to seeing. Green in areas she saw gray or black in her previous encounter with the creatures.

"Gorians." Natsu hissed.

_Mm, so that's what they're called._ The blonde thought.

The Gorians grinned, from above the trees, behind bushes, or in plain sight, and more were popping up by the second.

_10... 20... 30... _Erza quickly thought, her eyes scanning the area.

_40_. She decided.

And they were completely surrounded.

* * *

"What kind of nonsense is that? From what I heard, she uses Teller Magic. You use Heavenly Body Magic." She stated.

"But being able to differentiate truths from the lies, that's not her magic. It's just something she can do on instinct. When she changed the minds of the Council Members, _that_ was her magic."

Ultear thought it over, then looked at him questioningly. "How do you know this?"

"You know my magic is rare, right?" The woman nodded, and he continued. "I inherited it from a tribe that existed long ago, who were almost completely wiped out when a man tried to summon the sun to his side. As a result, a meteor shower rained down on them, killing the majority. That tribe was also known to be able to tell truths. Not by magic, but by nature."

Ultear's and Meredy's eyes widened. "Then that means you two are-"

Jellal glanced at them. "Yes. We're related, descendants of the same tribe."

* * *

_"I sense a great battle coming up..."_

_"A battle?" Juvia asked._

_Makarov nodded. "Yes. Though I'm not sure between what forces, nor when. Only that we will be involved, and that there will be a lot of collateral damage."_

_"There always is when we're involved." Gray reminded him._

_He sighed. "But nonetheless, I want to be prepared. And I would like you to help me. Scattered throughout the northern regions, there are powerful, ancient relics that, when brought together, create a nearly indestructible barrier. I have a feeling we may need it later."_

_"Oh, alright. So you just want us to collect them all?"_

_"Yes, all three. I have a map for them, but it'll be dangerous. The only reason I chose you two is because it's up north. Lots of snow, your kind of environment Gray. Juvia seems accustomed to the cold as well, and she's compatible with you."_

_"Juvia c-c-compatible with Gray-sama?!" She fumbled, face reddened._

_"The two of you have accomplished two Unison Raids, a magic only those with strong bonds can use and impossible to master. Yet you have used it twice. I don't want you going on your own, and I can't think of anyone better suited to the job than Juvia."_

_Gray scratched the back of his head. "I guess that makes sense..." He mumbled._

_"I get to go on a mission with Gray-sama!" She squealed._

_Makarov smiled. "I assume that means you'll go." He handed them a large scroll, yellowed with age. Gray unrolled it to see it was that map, and indeed, it was the northern regions. He recognized some of the places quite well._

_"The pass to one of the relics will open next week and only for a few days. If you wish to get through it again, you'd have to wait a year or so. I suggest you leave tomorrow."_

As Gray thought back on Master's words, he scanned the map, searching over the entire area only for his eyes to flit back repeatedly to one particular spot.

Crystal Pass... That one place Ur told him never to go to.

He vaguely remembered staring up at the pass as a child, always wondering what lay behind it but secretly afraid to check. Lyon had once tried, though their teacher had caught him just past the towering ice cliffs and beat him up. Him too, since he didn't stop him.

He chuckled to himself drily. He had never told Master he had come from the northern regions. The geezer had never asked.

His eyes fogged with distance as he reminisced about his younger days. They were hard, to be sure, but he believed he had enjoyed it. He would have loved it even more had his head not been filled with constant thoughts of vengeance.

And beside him was, unbeknownst to the male, a _very_ giddy Water Mage.

_Ah... I can't believe I get to go on a mission with Gray-sama~!_ Juvia thought to herself, cupping her cheeks with her hands.

She jumped a little as he suddenly started laughing, startled. She wanted to ask what was so funny, but freaked out when she noticed his eyes were glazed over. Was now a good time to speak to him?

The girl decided to give it a shot. "Er... Is something the matter Gray-sama?"

He snapped back to life. "Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine."

_Now that I think about it... Juvia kinda reminds me of Ur. She has the same smile. And they're both crazy._ He paused for a moment, then corrected himself. _No, all the women I ever met in my life are crazy._

"Hey, Juvia. Can I ask you something?"

Blood rushed to her face as her heart began beating faster, pounding in her chest. What did Gray want to ask her? A marriage proposal? A date?

She inwardly screamed in joy at the thought, then the more logical part of her kicked in.

_No, no... We are in the middle of a very important mission... Gray-sama would not ask such things._

_Maybe he would never ask_... She thought sadly. There are often times when her love felt unrequited. He was never cold to her. Just treated her the way he treated everyone else.

"Um... Juvia?"

Her face was now flushed with embarrassment as she realized she never replied. "Yes! Yes, of course Gray-sama, anything."

He sighed a little, and then said "Master said you 'seemed accustomed to the cold.' Are you from the north as well?" Only the north had temperatures to be truly called 'cold.'

She nodded. "Yes, before Juvia's orphanage she lived in the north."

Gray blinked. "So why did you go to the orphanage?"

A pained expression crossed her face. "Deliora." She said sadly. "Deliora came... wrecked Juvia's town... killed Juvia's family..."

Juvia let out a little gasp as Gray comfortingly squeezed her shoulder, hand shaking.

_Her too_... He thought bitterly. _Damned Deliora_...

She looked at Gray to see his eyes downcast, jaw clenched. She knew he meant to comfort her, but...

_Juvia thinks... Gray needs more comfort than I_... She reached over and carefully pulled his hand off her shoulder, clasping it in her own. He looked at her in surprise, and she smiled, then rested her head on his shoulder. "Juvia is tired..." She mumbled, stifling a yawn.

"...G-go ahead. I'll wake you up in the morning." He fumbled. _Hell_, it was hot in here! But to strip he'd have to make Juvia move...

He sighed, and decided to tough it out. It's not like it was worth it anyway.

* * *

"Fist of the Fire Dragon!" Natsu shouted, giving the monster an insanely hard punch to the back of the head. The Gorian fell the ground in a large heap, and he victoriously put a foot on the body.

"I got the last one!" The pink-haired teen whooped.

Gajeel grumbled and put away his sword, the glossy metal returning to its flesh form. Happy cheered, and Romeo had an uncertain expression. The others simply didn't care.

"How did everyone do?" Erza asked.

Natsu was first. "Fourteen!"

"Thirteen..." Gajeel grumbled.

"Four." Wendy added calmly.

Lucy clenched a fist in front of her face and grinned. "Seven!"

"Three!" Levy chirped.

"F-four..." Romeo muttered, his head hung low.

Erza nodded. "I took care of the rest."

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "Rest? There were only about forty." She gestured to the area around them, Gorians scattered and beaten, littering the ground and draped over branches.

"There were more in hiding a little further off. They were probably planning to come out after you were exhausted, but I dealt with them."

"H-how many?..." Levy asked nervously.

Erza smirked, and tossed her hair over her shoulder. "I can't say I kept exact count, but around 37."

_She totally kept count_... They all thought.

"No fair! We totally could've beat up more if we knew they were there!" Natsu shouted in protest. In spite of himself, Gajeel grunted in agreement, earning them both a hard stare from the S-Class mage herself. They cringed, and their surrounding companions snickered.

"Does it really matter? I'm tired." Lucy whined.

"Then let us be going." She turned to Happy and Charle, who were drifting towards them, wings scarcely moving. As expected, Charle gripped the map in her paws, for she was given it to be sure it wouldn't get ruined during the scuffle.

Charle handed the map to Lucy, and settled back to the ground. It was only then Lucy realized the parchment was moist. "What happened?!" The blonde shrieked, shifting her hold so she had just enough fingers on it to keep it from falling to the ground.

With a 'hmph,' she stated "He-cat dropped it in the water."

"Happy!" Lucy cried, turning on the blue cat.

Before Lucy could kill the poor creature, Levy quickly said "Don't worry Lu-chan! I used water-proof ink!"

The blonde loosened her grip on Happy's tail, and breathed a sigh of relief.

The red-head then turned on her heels, and began walking away, the others quickly following in suit.

"So how long will it take from here?" Erza asked Lucy, who was studying the map.

The blonde sighed. "3 hours."

They all groaned at the reply, with Erza's more of an irritable growl. She was getting rather hungry.

**~3 hours later~**

"We're hereeeeeeeeeeee!" Natsu shouted ecstatically upon walking in the town. Heads curiously turned to look, and Erza quickly cuffed him in the back of the head with an armored hand.

"Do not disgrace Fairy Tail." She growled angrily. Natsu quaked, and the others cringed. By now, it was clear she was in an awful mood.

At the violent display, they all turned with hesitant expressions and carried on with their business. As they stood marveling at the well-lit, bustling town, a young girl sporting a kimono cautiously walked up to them, eyes low.

"U-um... Would you like me to escort you to the hot springs?" She quietly stuttered, then drew away as if she feared getting hit as well.

"Please do." Erza replied curtly. They all sighed in relief. They were just thinking how the heck they were going to find the hot springs in this huge town.

"Erm... okay... Please stay close..." She then turned, and began trodding off along the paved, stone path. As she requested, the others followed, oohing and ahing at their surroundings.

The girl smiled. She was quite used to the awes. The town was quite beautiful and she knew it well.

She jumped the blonde beside her suddenly asked "May I ask you your name?"

Shooting her an apologetic look, she quickly added "Ah! Sorry! Didn't mean to scare you..."

"N-no... it's okay. I get scared very easily so..."

And just then, Natsu decided to swallow up the flames of a torch.

"Eek! Monster!" She shrieked, hiding behind Lucy.

"Natsu!" Lucy hit him very much like Erza did earlier, and he cried in protest "I don't do anything!"

"You're scaring her!" She replied defensively. She was aware that behind her, the girl was trembling.

"I'm just eating!"

"Eat later!"

"I'm hungry!"

_"Eat later!" _She insisted.

"At this rate, we're never gonna get there." Gajeel muttered.

"I don't care!" They shouted in unison.

"Silence!" Erza yelled, hitting them _both_. "Settle your disputes after we arrive!"

"Okay..." They both whimpered, clutching their bruises.

Suddenly, a light, airy laugh filled reached their ears. They turned to the girl, who had a hand over her mouth in attempts to stifle her laughter.

"Ah... I'm sorry..." She said apologetically. "It's just..." She allowed one last giggle to escape from her lips. "You all look so funny!"

Their eyes widened, then broke into smiles.

"Yeah, we're pretty crazy huh?" Wendy giggled.

She nodded, her eyes bright, and the bluenette rushed to the front, starting up a conversation with the timid girl.

Thanks to Wendy, she opened up rather quickly, though she still kept her quiet demeanor, and they all talked and laughed as they went along. Her name was Laury, she was 10 years old, and had been working at the hot springs all her life- her family owned the business. She answered any questions the group had, how old the town was, how many people lived in it, and, many, many times, when they were going to get to the hot springs.

"It's pretty far in to the town." She said, almost apologetically. "It was as far away from the water source the business could first afford to have the hot springs. That's why we make sure to provide everything in one place, and make it as pleasurable and comfortable as possible."

Lucy smiled. "I'll bet it's worth it!"

Laury nodded. "It is! We're famous for having the most satisfied customers."

"I can't wait to get there!" Wendy sighed happily.

Levy leaned over to Romeo, who hung at the back of the group, a little miffed that Wendy left him. "Jealous Romeo?"

"Wha-? O-of course not!" He fumbled in response, quickly turning away from her grin.

Much to his relief, Laury soon chirped "Here we are!"

Upon setting her sights on the building, Erza hummed in approval. "Looks rather quaint."

And indeed it did. It appeared to be a more traditional building, almost completely made of wood with slide in doors. Flowering trees accompanied it, various bright colors peeking from their buds. A huge cloud of steam rose from behind it, thick and inviting. It was difficult to see exactly how large the building was, due to the trees, but they (almost) all figured it must be large since it's so popular.

Laury guided them in, pushing open the doors and stepping aside to let them all in before entering herself.

"Papa! Mama! We have customers!" She cheerfully called.

A middle-aged woman sporting a kimono similar to Laury's bowed, her graying bun not moving an inch from being done so tightly. She raised her head, eyes kind. "Welcome to Guana Hotsprings. Are you all a group?"

They nodded, and she continued "Very well. My daughter will escort you to your rooms and give you the general layout of the building..." Their eyes brightened at the thought of finally getting to relax, but her own, beady ones glinted. "...But one of you must stay behind to discuss the fee."

They all groaned, but Erza merely said "Please do it Levy. I will pay for all of us, but I am in no mood to stand around here."

Levy hesitated, but seeing Erza's hidden glare that she'd become familiar with over the years, she asked no questions and walked up to the front desk.

"Need help Shrimp?" Gajeel gruffed, earning him some surprised looks from the others.

Levy looked surprised as well, but merely replied "No, I'm fine Gajeel!"

Catching the stares, he added "You kinda look like you can't reach the counter..."

Her eyebrow twitched. "Screw you!" She exclaimed, waving a fist at him.

They all laughed, and Laury smiled. "Shall we go, then?"

At their unanimous, eager nods, she gestured with her hands to follow her, and they did just that.

As she led them down the moderately dark halls, she said "This place is a lot bigger than it looks, so you really shouldn't wander around too much. And try to memorize the way please."

Ignoring the various curses and falls they made as they fumbled in the darkness, she rounded a corner and threw open some doors. "Here we are!"

They all rushed around Laury to peek inside, and widened their mouths in surprise.

"..."

"..."

"It looks plain." They unanimously deadpanned. It was a small room, lightly decorated on the walls and a tiny bakery of some sort in the corner. A large kotatsu stood in the middle, with cushions for all of them. The entrance for what seemed to be the springs stood on the left, extremely close to their bedrooms for the night.

"Oh, haha." She scratched at her cheek sheepishly. "That's what I always tell my parents, but they say simple is best." Seeing their rather skeptical looks, she said quickly "But the baths are really good!" She walked over to the far said of the room, and gestured to the two sliding doors near each other. "This is where you'll be sleeping. Please make yourself comfortable while I prepare the springs."

Erza automatically strode to the door on the left, the girls quickly following.

"Oy, Salamander, wrong room." Gajeel took him by the ear and dragged him to the other room, the girls watching the scene with a somewhat disgusted expression.

"I-I can't even tell if he's a perv or an idiot…" Lucy muttered to Wendy.

A familiar voice suddenly jumped in. "For my sake of mind, let's say he's an idiot."

Lucy blinked, then grinned at the incoming figure. "Levy!"

"Lu-chan!" She waved at the blonde, the two rushing at each other for an embrace.

Sweat-dropping, Wendy watched the tender scene. "Lucy-san… Levy-san… you had only seen each other a few minutes ago…"

Erza then came into the room, carrying a_ massive_ load of desserts. The scarlet-haired woman had a seeming blissful expression on her face.

"That's too much!" They all exclaimed.

"I have to say, they aren't impressive to look at, but they taste phenomenal." Plopping onto the bed, she unwrapped another and stuffed it into her mouth, that strange expression taking over her features almost immediately.

'_Sh-she's in love…'_

Laury appeared at the doorway, stacks of towels in her arms. "Th- the springs are ready girls… Please enter it whenever you like." Excusing herself with a small bow, the girl went off to give the boys a similar message.

They all exchanged grins. "Let's go."

They all made their way to the door, and Lucy caught Erza trying to take some sweets with her. "Erza! You can eat later!"

Pure regret crossing the woman's face, she slowly put it back on the bed. Lucy almost felt bad at Erza's obvious reluctance.

"I-I shall come back for you…" She choked, before Lucy finally pulled her out the door.

…

"Hello sirs… The springs are ready…" Laury stared at the lone man inside the room, seemingly bored out of his wits. "Erm… where did everyone go?"

"Oh, Salamander and Conbolt when to the bathroom or somethin'… The cat too, I think."

She blinked. Well, that was alright. "The springs are ready now, so you can enter whenever you wish..."

Yawning, he muttered. "Alright then." Much to her horror, he immediately began removing his shirt.

"EEK! P-please remove your clothing in the bathroom!" She blustered, nearly dropping the towels in surprise.

The man glared. It sounded like too much trouble. "Where's that?"

"R-right next to the springs sir…"

Well, that wasn't too bad. Grudgingly, he stomped past Laury towards the springs, who sighed in relief the second he was out of range.

'_These people are strange…_' She thought, closing the door and moving to tend to the other guests of the house.

…

"Wow, this feels great!" Lucy exclaimed as she stretched. Laury wasn't joking, the water felt amazing! She swore she felt every trace of fatigue she's accumulated over the past couple_ weeks_ being washed away with the gentle waves.

Poking at one of the many, strange, pink flowers floating on the surface, she said "Wonder if this has something to do with it."

The water stirred as her companions entered, immediately breaking into sighs. "I think I can sleep here…" Levy murmured.

Erza snuggled further into the water, almost completely submerging herself when a small, rectangular device caught her eye. "Oh? What's this?"

The others glanced at her, the same curious expression overcoming them as well. Erza began reading off the buttons; "'Muscle relief, anxiety remover, skin enhancement…' My, my." Erza mused. Smirking, she asked "What would you girls like?"

They all shouted in unison "Skin enhancement!"

"Then so it is." She pressed the button, and waited.

Nothing happened.

"Th-the flowers…" Wendy said suddenly, and they all looked at the blossoms; they were all floating in one direction, into a filter of sorts. And they didn't seem to be coming back.

"There too." Charle pointed out, gesturing at the area next to Levy. They watched in amazement as new, golden flowers took the pink ones' place, tumbling into the water and resting on the surface. Pretty soon, the spring was completely filled with the gold flowers.

"So it was the flowers after all…" Lucy said after all. The water did feel a little different. Not as good as before, but if it really did help her skin, she had no complaints.

All sharing the same thoughts, they submerged themselves in the water, and relaxed. It really was warm.

…

Laury passed by the other two boys (and the cat) along her usual route, and she gave the same message, smiling when they all dashed off.

After quickly performing her nightly chores around the house, she sighed, and glanced at the clock . It was just about time for her break.

…

"Romeo, hurry up!" Natsu shouted as he undressed, throwing everything carelessly around the room. He then took a random towel and wrapped it around his waist.

"I-I'm trying, Natsu-nii…" The younger teen replied, being just a little more deliberate. His eyes widened in surprise at Natsu peering through the glass instead of jumping right in. "Is something the matter?"

"There's someone there." He replied, moving over so Romeo could look as well. A person with long, dark hair was turned away from them, submerged up to the shoulders and leaning against the rocks.

'A woman?..." He thought. All that steam made it difficult to see clearly.

"Maybe she thinks it's a shared one or something." Natsu grumbled. "You should tell her to get out."

Alarmed, he asked "Wh-why me?!"

"I feel like using the bathroom again." He replied, already heading toward the bathroom joined with the springs.

Sighing, he steeled himself and slowly pushed the door aside, half covering his eyes in precaution. The person seemed to take no notice of his entrance, not reacting in any manner at all. "Um… ma'am, I think you're in the wrong place… This is the mens' springs…"

The figure suddenly turned, and upon finally seeing the person's face, he thought his heart stopped. "The hell you talking to, Conbolt?"

The boy stared in shock, mouth working to form some sort of response, but failing.

"…"

"…"

_-Snort-_

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!" Romeo clutched his stomach, sitting on his heels as he tried to contain his laughter.

"What's so funny?!" Gajeel demanded.

Romeo's eyes had begun leaking tears. "You- you- I thought-" He fell over, and roared "SUCH LONG, PRETTY HAIR!"

Gajeel's face flushed, and he glared menacingly. "Shut up, brat! It's not my fault it actually goes_ flat_ in the water!" It was so unfair! Salamander's hair fricking _defied_ gravity- it stayed that spiky _hell_ mess whatever he did to it! He was a Dragon Slayer too, why couldn't the same rules apply to him?!

At that moment, the Fire Dragon Slayer chose to storm into the room. "Hey, Romeo! Did that girl leave ye- HOLY SHIT IT'S GAJEEL!"

The Iron Dragon Slayer fumed as he began pointing and laughing at him. And, to add fuel to the flames, Romeo was still rolling on the floor in hysterics. "Hahahaha I totally thought you were a girl!"

"Bastards!" He hissed. Aiming straight at the two, he roared "Roar of the Iron Dragon!"'

"HIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Romeo screamed as he went flying who knows where, and Natsu got thrown right back into the bathroom, shooting through more than a few walls.

The pink-haired fool emerged from the rubble, now equally pissed as Gajeel. "Why you… ROAR OF THE FIRE DRAGON!"

…

Back in the girls' spring, the five of them floated among blue flowers. Erza had eventually switched it to muscle relief, complaining that her arms were a bit sore.

"Hey, Erza?" Lucy asked, eyes half closed.

"Yes Lucy?" The scarlet-haired woman replied.

"…Did you hear something?"

She listened, then shook her head. "Nothing at all. Perhaps you're just hearing things."

Sighing, the blonde sunk further into the water. "Maybe…"

* * *

It was the middle of the night. All was quiet in the halls of the Magic Council's headquarters. A lone girl walked slowly across the floor, eyes nothing but milky, distant orbs. Her arms lay by her sides like dead weights, unmoving as she walked.

The girl kept walking until she came upon the kitchen, shuffling into the dark room. As if she knew the place by heart, she moved around the tables and counters and straight to the cabinet, reaching to pull the drawer open. She felt around, her hand closing around the hilt of a knife, and slowly pulling it out of the drawer. The blade glinted, and she clutched it tightly.

She carried the knife all the way to a small, nearly empty room that hung in the back of the kitchen. Crates and barrels were stacked along the walls, but the girl paid them no mind. Still caught in her trance, she lifted the blade to her finger, and poked the tip into her flesh. The knife clattered to the floor, now of no purpose to her. Blood dripped onto the ground, dropping like a slow rain. She sunk to her knees, and her hand moved on its own. Strange, crimson letters formed as she wrote, thinking nothing but seeing _everything_.

_A dragon roared in the distance, flapping its wings as it charged at the town. Light flashed as it was repelled, held back temporarily by an invisible force. People screamed as they ran, mages trying but failing to calm the citizens down. The sky was red._

Her hand moved upwards, then strayed to the right, and lifted it momentarily to strike a few diagonal lines across the middle.

_Destruction…_

_In a castle, a large, fearsome beasts screamed its rage, a piercing, bloodcurling scream. Three figures stood before the dragon, carrying an aura of determination, but being suppressed by the dragon's thick, imposing one. That scream was full of sadness._

She started a second letter, moving in an s-like shape and circling it a few times. Using her other hand, she squeezed her palm to draw more blood.

_Despair…_

_Dark, dark clouds rolled through the scarlet sky, but no rain was spilled. Only dragons. More dragons emerging from the heavens, destruction on their wings. A girl screamed at the sky, the corpses of her comrades around her. She was the last one left. And all she could do was cry… Because for the second time in her life, she had lost her family._

Now trembling, her hand swiped across the floor, as tears flowed from her empty eyes. Her breath came out haggard, as she drew the last word.

_Death._

The door flew open. "Celestia!"

Color slowly floated back into her eyes, shaking in terror. A scream ripped from her throat before she passed out, both weak from the loss of her blood and the shock of the scene before her. The butler rushed to the girl, pulling her off the ground and trying to wake her. Blood was stamped on her forehead.

As he stood, he finally saw the mess on the floor, and felt like collapsing himself. This was no language he was familiar with, but he knew what these letters meant. _Somehow_, he_ knew_.

Shaking his head, he muttered frantically "We can't stay. We can't stay here anymore." Shattering the bracelet on the girl's wrist with his bare hand, he ran, Celestia in his arms. The light of dawn began flooding the hallways, painfully beautiful. He passed people, shocked expressions on their faces.

Racing out of the building, he broke right into the woods and continued to run. Where he was running, he didn't know. He just had to hide. Because if they got a hold of Celestia after seeing those letters…

She would never be able to smile again.

* * *

**My my, that was a bit... dark. o.O Sorry if it's abrupt, I couldn't think of much more to add. Well, this is pretty how the next few chapters will be like; little Gruvia, some Crime Sorcier, Natsu and company, and Celestia. The next chapter will start off with how Natsu and the others are punished for being so cray 8D **

**Also, from now on, I'll be keeping my status on my fanfics right on my profile- check it out every now and then to see possible update dates, new stories and other stuff. (I have a good deal of stories I'm planning to write) If you have any questions, just ask! :)**

**From now on, my**** updates will be considerably slow. I'll try not to take more than three months, but... well, I can't trust myself to promise anything. I'll just see how things work out.**

**Hm, I feel like I'm forgetting something. Oh well, I'll edit later, if need be. Either way, it's 5 AM rn and my brain is fried.**

**Well, I hope you liked it! Please leave a review x)**

**Till next time! *waves***

**(Next to update: Fairy Tails and Soul Eaters!)**


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